LAGOS, March 3 (Xinhua) -- The governor of southwest Nigeria's Oyo State Abiola Ajimobi said Friday his administration welcomes investment from Chinese companies.
Ajimobi said was speaking in Ibadan, the state capital while receiving a Chinese delegation led by Lin Jing, minister-counselor with the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria.
The governor told his guests that the state government forged business ties with some Chinese groups in its newly-established Free Trade Zone along the Ibadan-Lagos Expressway.
He cited the company Polaris as an example, which cooperated with the Nigerian side in establishing the Pacesetter Polaris Group. According to the governor, Pacesetter Polaris has attracted 153 construction companies.
"We are planning to construct light rail in the state and I hope the project would be completed in 24 months," he said.
Ajimobi added he looked forward to working with more Chinese enterprises in the fields of agriculture, solar energy and infrastructure.
The governor said his state decided to strengthen its relationship with China because of the country's phenomenal economic growth.
Lin said the visit was to further strengthen ties between the Chinese government and the Oyo State government.
The governor has made a number of trips to China in the last three years to seek investment to improve infrastructure in his state.
