A South Korean group, Grace Bridge WID Limited, has concluded plans with the Imo state government to set up a Smart City in the state.
This followed the successful visit of the Commissioner for Budget, Planning and Statistics, Dr C.C. Osuala, to South Korea recently during which modalities for the establishment of the business hub was discussed.
The commissioner, who disclosed this to Blueprint over the weekend, said a memorandum of understanding was signed after a return visit to the state by the Koreans.
He said the state’s prudence in budgeting, which had since been acknowledged by the World Bank through the internationally acclaimed award of States’ Fiscal Transparency Accountability System (SFTAS), led to the interest shown by the Koreans.
Describing the proposed Smart City project as “first of its kind in Africa”, Dr Osuala said the project would cost 7 billion US Dollars and would be sited in a 2,000 hectare land in Mbaitoli local government area of the state, adding that it would create 5,000 jobs for Imo indigenes in particular and Nigerians in general.
He listed the features of the Smart City project to include a 24/7 power supply with hydro and solar energy running simultaneously, a FIFA standard stadium, an Olympic sized swimming pool, world class high rise hospitals, with helipads where helicopters would be landing to pick patients and other high rise edifices; educational institutions to be populated with people from different continents; adequate security, among others.
The commissioner said the Korean investors would fund it and eventually recoup what they spend through the sales they would organise, especially as very important personalities would be coming from different parts of the world to patronise the services that would be available in the city.
