Why Ogun State Can Be Nigeria’s Richest State – If We Get It Right Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola Yayi By ‘Lekan Odunlami, Esq

Every morning across Ogun State, millions of people wake up before sunrise. Farmers head to their farms. Traders open their shops. Parents prepare their children for school. Young people leave home hoping to find work that will help them build a better future. Yet, despite all the blessings God has given Ogun State, many families still struggle to make ends meet.
One question keeps coming up everywhere you go. “Why is Ogun State not one of the richest and most developed states in Nigeria?”

It is a fair question. After all, Ogun State has almost everything a state needs to succeed. We share a border with Lagos, the commercial capital of Nigeria, and another with the Republic of Benin. We have industries, fertile land, hardworking people, universities, markets and one of the strongest business environments in the country.
So why are many families still finding life difficult?
This is the question that Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, believes must be answered; not with speeches alone, but with practical action.
To him, Ogun State is not a poor state. It is a state whose enormous potential has not yet been fully unlocked.
One of the biggest ways to unlock that potential is by creating jobs. Ogun is already known as Nigeria’s industrial capital. From Agbara to Ota, Sagamu, Ifo, Remo and Abeokuta, hundreds of factories produce food, cement, pharmaceuticals, plastics, beverages and many other products used across Nigeria.
Imagine if even more companies chose Ogun State. Imagine if every local government had thriving businesses. Imagine if our young graduates no longer had to relocate to Lagos, Abuja or overseas before they could find good jobs. That is the kind of economy Senator Yayi believes Ogun State can build. But industries alone are not enough.

Education
No state can become truly wealthy if its education system is weak. Today, one of the biggest burdens facing parents in Ogun State is private school fees. Many parents are not sending their children to private schools because they are rich. They are doing so because they have lost confidence in many public schools.
Every new school term brings anxiety. Parents struggle to pay fees, buy books, uniforms and transport. Some take loans. Some borrow from friends. Others work extra hours just to keep their children in school. This should not be the reality. There was a time when public schools produced some of Nigeria’s finest doctors, lawyers, engineers, teachers, professors and business leaders. Senator Yayi knows this because he is a product of public education.
Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola (Yayi) understands the importance of quality public education because he is a product of it. He attended State Primary School, Alimosho, and Community Grammar School, Akowonjo, before obtaining a Higher National Diploma in Accounting from Ondo State Polytechnic, Owo (now Rufus Giwa Polytechnic). His educational journey proves that public schools can produce exceptional leaders when properly funded and managed. He believes Ogun’s public schools can regain that standard through better infrastructure, qualified teachers and modern learning facilities, thereby reducing the heavy financial burden of private school fees on parents and giving every child access to quality education, regardless of their family’s income When public schools have qualified teachers, modern classrooms, science laboratories, libraries, computers, sporting facilities and proper security, parents will gladly enrol their children there again.
That means less pressure on family income.
It means parents can save money for their businesses, healthcare or housing instead of spending everything on school fees.
It means every child—whether born in Ijebu, Yewa, Egba, Remo or Awori—has an equal opportunity to succeed.
Education is not an expense.
It is an investment.

Another area that deserves urgent attention is agriculture.

Ogun has some of the most fertile land in Nigeria. Our farmers grow cassava, cocoa, maize, rice, vegetables, fruits and many other crops. Yet many farmers still lose money because of poor roads, limited storage facilities and difficulty accessing affordable loans.
Senator Yayi believes farmers should not merely survive; they should prosper. By improving rural roads, supporting mechanised farming, encouraging food processing industries and helping farmers access markets, agriculture can become one of the biggest employers of labour in the state.
Healthcare also deserves serious attention.
Nobody should have to travel long distances before receiving quality medical care.
Every community deserves functional primary healthcare centres, well-equipped hospitals, essential medicines and motivated health workers. A healthy population is a productive population.
Small businesses must not be forgotten either.
From market women in Kuto and Ijebu-Ode to mechanics in Ota, fashion designers in Sagamu, transport operators in Sango and artisans across the state, these hardworking men and women keep Ogun’s economy moving every single day.
What they need is not endless promises thus, they need:
Good roads.
Reliable electricity.
Access to affordable loans.
A government that listens.
When small businesses succeed, communities flourish.
Senator Yayi also believes that transparency and accountability are essential for development. People invest where they trust the government. Businesses grow where policies are consistent. Young people stay where opportunities exist. Government works best when every naira is spent wisely and every project delivers value to the people. Perhaps Ogun State’s greatest resource is not its land or its factories. It is its people.
Ogun people are known across Nigeria for their intelligence, resilience, creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. Give them the right environment, and there is almost nothing they cannot achieve. The dream of making Ogun State one of Nigeria’s richest states is not impossible given:
The location is already here.
The industries are already here.
The fertile land is already here.
The hardworking people are already here.
The opportunities are already here.

What remains is leadership with the vision to bring these pieces together and build an Ogun State where every family can live with dignity, every child can receive a quality education, every young person can find opportunities, every farmer can prosper and every business can grow.
For Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola (Yayi), that is the Ogun State worth building and one that future generations will proudly call home.

‘Lekan Odunlami is a Legal Practitioner. He writes from Lagos.
lekan@hotmail.com