United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Terence McCulley, yesterday commended Kwara State Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, for showing exemplary leadership during the petrol subsidy crisis.

McCulley, who made the commendation during a courtesy call on Ahmed at Government House, Ilorin, said: "I applaud your leadership during the strike, you took the initiative to go out and talk to them, to find out what is on their mind.  This an example of forward-looking leadership this country needs.

That to me, demonstrates why Kwara is a model for other parts of this great country."

The envoy pledged his country's support to the state government in the areas of agricultural development and policies implementation for the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) goals. He said the US would also explore other ways of assisting the government in its efforts to move the state forward. 
According to him, agriculture remains a vital weapon for driving the economy forward and commended the governor for his giant strides in transforming agriculture in the State, especially commercial agriculture.

Speaking on the issue of security, the US envoy said security was very important in the economy of any nation, noting that it was only under a peaceful atmosphere that any prospective investor would be willing to invest his money.

Responding, Ahmed thanked the envoy for the visit, saying the visit was a great opportunity for the state, especially at a time the State government was consolidating on making the state a prime investment destination.

Outlining the benefits of the state government's N70 billion joint venture with a Spanish consortium for rice cultivation and processing, Ahmed said the project would generate about 12,000 jobs when fully operational.
The state government, he said, was already partnering Cornell University, New York to establish an agric-city in the state for commercial farming and agro-processing.

According to the governor, the agric-city when fully operational, was expected to serve the local, national and International markets, adding that government was also putting the International Airport in the state capital into functional level to support export of agro- related activities from the proposed agric-city.

Ahmed solicited the US government's support in the area of foreign investment, security and capacity building for civil servants.  He therefore promised to create an enabling environment for investment to thrive in the State and to strengthen the relationship between Kwara State and the US.