Obaseki parades state policy responses to COVID-19 at Taiwan Smart City Summit

• Discusses human trafficking with Italian ambassador

Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has said his administration is taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic era to leapfrog development in the state.

Obaseki said this on Tuesday in his presentation at the annual Smart City Mayors’ Summit taking place in Taipei, Taiwan.

The theme of the summit is how cities are leading the digital transformation of industries by building digital infrastructure.

According to the governor, who joined the high-profile global event virtually, “COVID-19 pandemic taught us that we are on our own, so our story is one of taking opportunities of the era to build our infrastructure.”

He told participants at the global event that as part of his administration’s concerted policy responses to COVID-19 pandemic, health sector reforms have been prioritised in the state.

“The lesson of COVID-19 for us with the lockdown is that we must do all we can to build our cities, build our states, build our infrastructure and therefore in the next five years or half a decade, the emphasis by my state government is to source investments, institutionalise the use of technology in our governance process, in our education system and also in our healthcare system,” the governor said.

MEANWHILE, Obaseki said, yesterday, his administration was strengthening the state’s response to human trafficking and illegal migration.

Obaseki disclosed this when he received the Italian Ambassador to Nigeria, Stefano De Leo, who was on a courtesy visit to the Government House, Benin City.

The governor, who hailed the Italian government for its support, said the collaboration between Edo and Italy translated to the huge success recorded in the fight against the scourge.

He noted: “We feel very special that your first visit outside Abuja is to Edo.”

This emphasises the special relationship that Edo State, as a sub-national, and the Italian government enjoys. We have had a longstanding relationship as you pointed out and are very glad that, under your leadership, we are hitting the ground running.”

Obaseki said: “As you know, we are currently working on a lot of initiatives with the Federal Government and the Italian authorities, and this derives from what we have done in the past. In the past five years, we have been working with the Italian authorities and have been able to significantly limit and reduce the incidents of irregular migration and human trafficking in Edo.

Earlier, the Italian ambassador assured the governor of the continued support of the Italian government and hailed the governor’s efforts in the fight against human trafficking and illegal migration.