• Says projects expected to create over 50,000 direct jobs
• Ogun residents lament poor infrastructure, tax burden, demand economic relief

Ogun State Government and DP World MEA FZE have signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) for the development of the Gateway Deep Sea Port and the Ogun State Blue Marine Special Economic Zone, with the projects expected to attract more than $7 billion in initial investment and create over 50,000 direct jobs.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu witnessed the signing of the MoU in Paris, France, alongside the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, and the Director-General of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mohammed Bello-Koko.

The agreement brings together the Federal Government, Ogun State Government, DP World, financial advisers and other private-sector partners in a major investment framework aimed at easing trade bottlenecks, strengthening logistics and expanding Nigeria’s manufacturing and export capacity.

Tinubu said the two projects would address longstanding infrastructure and logistics constraints while creating an integrated platform for industrial production, maritime commerce and access to African and global markets.

The President said that the 28-kilometre Ogun section of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway would provide a critical link between the port and industrial zone, among others.

He added that the emerging corridor would also connect with other strategic investments, including the proposed Nigerian Navy Operating Base and Dockyard and the OK LNG Project, strengthening the relationship between maritime infrastructure, industry, energy and trade.

Tinubu said the projects represented an initial investment of more than $7 billion and were projected to generate over 50,000 direct jobs, alongside additional indirect employment opportunities.

He described the investment as a practical expression of economic diversification and industrialisation under the Renewed Hope Agenda.

Earlier, Governor Dapo Abiodun described the signing as a defining moment in the economic history of Ogun State and Nigeria’s engagement with the global economy.

In another development, residents of communities across Ogun State, under the aegis of Make Ogun State Great Again (MOGA), yesterday staged a peaceful protest at the Governor’s Office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, demanding urgent action to address poor infrastructure and worsening socio-economic conditions in the state.

The protesters, drawn from the 20 local councils of the state, converged on the government complex to present a list of demands, including the rehabilitation of roads, reduction of multiple taxations, improved healthcare services, employment opportunities and greater access to resources at the grassroots.

Convener of MOGA, Olawoye Kayode, who spoke on behalf of the protesters, said the group represented artisans, market women, youths, elderly people and other residents who, according to him, were struggling with the rising cost of living and inadequate public infrastructure.

Responding on behalf of the state government, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, AIG Olushola Zubair (rtd), commended the protesters for conducting themselves peacefully and presenting their grievances in an organised manner.