Afe Babalola, founder of Afe Babalola University (ABUAD), has expressed frustration with the Nigerian government for delaying the approval of free trade zone status for the university’s industrial park in Ado-Ekiti.
Speaking during the ABUAD-China Partnership Forum Meeting on Wednesday, Mr. Babalola lamented the missed opportunities to boost Nigeria’s economy through the 132-unit industrial park.
“The over 132 units of ABUAD industrial park in Ado-Ekiti are enough to turn the story of Nigeria around if well annexed and utilised,” he said. He compared Nigeria’s stagnation to China’s rapid transformation, recalling a visit to the country in 1999 when it was still poor.
“At that time, China was a very poor country, but the Chinese people were very wise. They created an area called a free trade zone, which allowed countries like the United States and Germany to set up industries there. Unknowingly to those countries, the Chinese learned from these foreign industries, which eventually contributed to their remarkable global development today,” he stated.
He criticized the federal government for stalling his two-year-long application for the free trade zone certificate, which has hindered the establishment of foreign businesses in the park. “There is an American company ready to begin manufacturing cars in my Industrial Park, but the lack of this certificate has stalled their plans,” Mr. Babalola said.
The ABUAD founder also used the opportunity to renew his call for a return to the regional government system and the adoption of a people-oriented constitution. “If we still had the regional government system that we used to have, we would be more developed than we are today. This is why we need a new constitution,” he argued.
Wendy Wang, secretary-general of the China-Nigeria Consortium on Industry and Education, commended Mr. Babalola for his vision and praised ABUAD’s integration of cutting-edge technologies into its curriculum. Speaking through an interpreter, she described ABUAD as the best institution in Nigeria.
Mr. Babalola’s remarks underscore his belief that granting the free trade zone status could unlock significant economic potential for Nigeria, transforming the country’s industrial landscape and fostering long-term growth.
