Mr & Mrs Babalola say airport is already changing travel decisions, attracting investors and opening Ekiti to the world
The economic value of the Ekiti Agro-Allied International Cargo Airport, Ado-Ekiti, has received a significant testimonial from an Ekiti couple based in Seychelles, who disclosed that the existence of the airport was the major factor that influenced their decision to extend their investment exploration visit to Ekiti State.
Mr Yinka Babalola and Mrs Omowumi Babalola, Ekiti indigenes resident in Seychelles, said bluntly that without a functional airport in Ekiti, they probably would not have included the state in their current investment-hunting itinerary.
The couple, who are in Nigeria exploring opportunities in the hospitality and tourism sectors, made the disclosure during an investment exploratory visit to the Director-General, Ekiti State Bureau of Tourism Development, Wale Ojo-Lanre, Esq., in Ado-Ekiti.
The visit was facilitated by Mr Asaolu Adepoju A. Praise, Convener, FUOYE Business School, Ado-Ekiti.
According to the Babalolas, the airport has removed one of the major psychological and logistical barriers that previously discouraged investors, tourists and Ekiti indigenes in the diaspora from coming into the state.
“Honestly, if not for this airport, we would probably not be here in Ekiti on this visit,” they said.
They recalled that during a previous visit to Nigeria with some Seychelles-based investors interested in exploring Nigerian opportunities, Ekiti could not conveniently be incorporated into their itinerary because access to the state was essentially dependent on long-distance road travel.
“Last year, we were in Nigeria with some investors from Seychelles who were looking at opportunities and possible partnerships in Nigeria. We would have loved to bring them to Ekiti, but the challenge of getting here discouraged the idea.
“Today, the story has changed. Ekiti now has a functional airport, and that changes a lot of things for investors.”
The couple commended Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji for ensuring the completion and functionality of the airport, while also acknowledging the roles played by previous administrations in nurturing the vision over the years.
They described the airport as one of the most consequential infrastructure investments in the development history of Ekiti State.
“Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, who completed the airport and made it functional, as well as his predecessors who contributed to the vision, deserve commendation and acknowledgement.
“The impact of this airport on the Ekiti development story cannot be easily quantified. It has opened a new door of accessibility, investment and movement for the state.”
They added that the significance of an airport should not be measured merely by aircraft movements or passenger numbers, but by the economic activities that improved connectivity can stimulate across tourism, hospitality, agriculture, real estate, commerce and professional services.
“To us, this is one of the most remarkable improvements Ekiti has witnessed. The people of Ekiti deserve to be congratulated.
“The airport makes it easier for people like us in the diaspora to come home, to bring partners, to explore opportunities and to begin serious conversations about investment.
“We are certain that many more Ekiti people outside Nigeria and other potential investors will increasingly take advantage of this access.”
Receiving the couple, the Director-General of the Ekiti State Bureau of Tourism Development, Wale Ojo-Lanre, Esq., described their testimony as a practical demonstration of the economic logic behind the airport project.
He said an airport is much more than a runway and terminal, stressing that connectivity is one of the strongest enablers of tourism and investment.
Ojo-Lanre assured the prospective investors of the Oyebanji administration’s open-door policy and readiness to welcome credible local and international investors into the state.
He took the visitors through a pictorial presentation of some of Ekiti’s tourism assets and briefed them on the State’s emerging tourism development architecture, including the Ekiti Tourism Development Master Plan, hospitality opportunities, cultural tourism, nature-based attractions and the administration’s commitment to improving the ease of doing business.
He explained that Governor Oyebanji’s administration has deliberately created an atmosphere of peace, accessibility and investor friendliness, positioning Ekiti as a destination where investors can visit, invest, stay and grow.
Ojo-Lanre also presented the couple with a copy of “Invest Ekiti,” a publication of the Ekiti State Development and Investment Promotion Agency (EKDIPA), highlighting investment opportunities available across different sectors of the state’s economy.
He assured them that the Bureau of Tourism Development, working in collaboration with EKDIPA and other relevant agencies, was ready to engage seriously with prospective investors in the hospitality and tourism sectors.
The Babalolas expressed satisfaction with the opportunities presented to them and promised to facilitate a virtual investment engagement involving the Bureau of Tourism Development, EKDIPA and prospective partners in Seychelles upon their return.
For Ekiti, the couple’s testimony presents perhaps one of the clearest answers yet to the question: Why does Ekiti need an airport?
Because every easier journey into Ekiti can become a hotel booking.
Every investor who can now reach Ado-Ekiti more conveniently represents a potential business.
Every diaspora Ekiti indigene who can come home with partners represents a new opportunity.
Every tourist brought closer to the state strengthens the hospitality economy.
And every flight that connects Ekiti more efficiently with the rest of Nigeria brings the state closer to markets, capital, partnerships and possibilities.
The Ekiti Airport is therefore not merely receiving aircraft. It is bringing opportunities home.
You can now Visit Ekiti State via both land and Air .
Ekiti Awaits You .
Visit Ekiti today .