Talking about fostering regional cooperation and integration as catalysts for rapid growth and development, Nigeria’s South West has a template. It’s homegrown, and sustained over time by common ancestry, cultural homogeneity and enduring political heritage. You can call them coalescing factors that have bound the people of the region together amidst few accidental political gaffes.
Equally noteworthy is the fact that the Yoruba people find it convenient to track back in times of national emergencies. They leverage easily on the visionary leadership and achievements of the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, first Premier of the Western Region, who laid a solid foundation for the developmental agendas for the Southwest. It was based on this trajectory that, after the creation of 19 states by the military regime of General Murtala Muhammed (July 1975 to February 1976), governors of the states of Oyo, Ogun and Ondo maintained this cordial relationship. After all, there were economic interests bequeathed to them by the defunct Western Region/Western State, which must be protected. Going further, the incorporation of Odua Investment Company Limited in 1976 to manage the business interests of the region further cemented this cooperation. Lagos was exempted from the union at the time. Understandably so because it was a federal capital even though her historical link to the Yoruba was unassailable.
All that have changed with changing political dynamics. Today, Lagos State is back to the South West fold and its governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu is Chairman of its governors’ forum. Ever since Sanwo-Olu mounted the saddle last year, the relationship among the governors in the region had moved from being tepid to one driven by common interests and purpose. This renewed vigour to drive the welfare of the people and general progress of the region is not unconnected to the visionary zeal and political acumen of the Lagos governor.
Take the recent meeting of the governors in Lagos, which had the six governors physically present. None of Biodun Oyebanji (Ekiti), Lucky Ayedatiwa (Ondo), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Ademola Adeleke (Osun) and Dapo Abiodun (Ogun) was represented at the meeting, which spoke volumes about their commitment to the regional cause. This underscores the seriousness the state chief executives attached to matters affecting their states and the region. Coupled with that was the fact that the governors prioritised the region and the welfare of the people above partisan proclivity. Thanks to the leadership acumen and accommodating spirit of a Chairman not given to partisan bickering. At the end of two days of serious deliberations, the governors forum, in a communique read by their host, charted a new direction for socio-political, economic cooperation and integration of the South West region.
By passing a vote of confidence on President Bola Tinubu for economic stability and improvements recorded across the nation, the forum looked beyond politics to acknowledge areas of palpable gains in the conditions of the people. Particular reference was made to sustained supply and distribution of petroleum products and stabilisation of the exchange rate. These are two economic drivers which managed or otherwise touches the existence of people in the grassroots. So, for members of the forum, economic stability takes a lot of burden off their shoulders because they are closer to the people and feel their pulses.
The fact that the forum thought it expedient to applaud the Federal Government’s student’s loan initiative was testament to the region’s rich pedigree in education and learning. At the close of 2024/25 portal, the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) had disbursed N22 billion to over 200,000 students across the country. This gesture by the Federal Government complements the free basic education policies of the South West governors. Since the Awolowo era as Premier of the Western Region, free and compulsory education has been a cardinal programme of the South West states. From the dispensation of the defunct Awolowo-led Action Group, followed by the Unity Party of Nigeria (1979-83) the policy has survived, thanks to the strong foundation laid down by successive leaders in the region. So, no one trifles with education in the South West and the consensus by the forum to deplete the numbers of out-of-school children remains sacrosanct.
On the rising prices of foods blamed on unscrupulous middlemen in the supply chain, the governors agreed to create a State Food Inflation Joint Monitoring Team and establish Aggregation Centres and Food Hubs to combat rising prices. This is a novel idea given the fact that a chunk of food products are bought off local farmers by middle men at rock bottom prices but resold at exorbitant prices. The forum under Sanwo-Olu could have borrowed a leaf from Lagos, which established food market hubs in strategic locations in the city. Residents visit these locations to buy fresh foods at controlled prices in a well organised environment and under hygienic condition. Lagos recently announced the return of the Sunday food markets to avail the common people the same opportunity. These interventions can be emulated by sister states in the region. After all, Oyo, Osun and Ekiti are agrarian states due to large expanse of arable land at their disposable. Lagos, which is in partnership with some states in the North, can extend the same hands of fellowship to sister states for rice production, for instance. With the rice mill in Imota, the South West governments can develop a framework to boost rice production and make the product available and affordable for people.
Following the creation of the Ministry of Regional Development by President Tinubu last year, it was just fair enough that the remaining geo-political zones, which were yet to receive special attention, also came on board. Therefore, the establishment of the South West Development Commission (SWDC) by the current administration was a welcome development. Essentially, the SWDC will foster growth, infrastructure development and ensure the region receives customised support to address its specific developmental needs and priorities. So, in their appreciation of government’s gesture, the Chairman of the Southwest Governors Forum said that the headquarters of the commission would be domiciled in Cocoa House, Ibadan. Once the tallest building in West Africa, iconic Cocoa House, which was built during Awolowo’s administration, is also a historical monument. It’s choice as headquarter of the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) attests to the edifice’s legendary status and a reminder of history. It is hoped the building will be given the deserving facelift even as it is instructive that Ibadan, unarguably the capital of South West politics was chosen as SWDC headquarters. The communique read: ‘We appreciate the Federal Government for creating the South West Development Commission (SWDC) with House in Ibadan as its headquarters. I have full confidence in Odu’a Investment Company Limited’s management of our regional assets. We urged the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission to strengthen collaboration with our Commissioners for Agriculture to boost industrialisation and infrastructure development’.
As for the peace and security of the region amidst the influx of criminal elements from other parts of the country, the forum resolved to establish a Joint Surveillance and Monitoring Team to enhance security coordination across the region. The patrol team had since swung into action. Recently, the Commandant of Ondo State wing of the South West Security Network (code-named Amotekun), Dr. Tunji Adeleye paraded 114 young men of northern extraction who were picked from Ondo State forests. The arrested youths, it was learned, were dropped off by trailer trucks from the North and had no identifiable purpose and destination. ‘Together, we are dedicated to promoting peace, security, and economic growth in the South West’, Sanwo-Olu told stakeholders in the region.
With such determination, the people of the region are assured of the safety of their lives and property.
