Ore, a town in Ondo State, is known to be theatre-of-war during the Nigerian Civil War. When Rotimi Akeredolu was elected as governor of Ondo State, he promised to transform the rustic town into an industrial hub.

STEVE OTALORO writes that Ore town has become an insdustrial hub as promised.

The mention of Ore town will send chills down the spine of so many people who were active participants of the great battle that took place there in the late 60s. It is a town where thousands of Nigerians were mowed down in a reckless and wanton manner during the Nigerian Civil War.

Ore town was a theatre-of-war where the Nigerian troops and their Biafran opponents confronted each other in a fierce battle for the gain of Nigeria’s soul and territories.

The sleepy town of Ore was historically known as the battle ground where the Biafran soldiers’ advancement into Lagos was halted by the superior and sophisticated weaponry power and tactical maneuvers of the Nigerian forces during the civil war.



The battle was so fierce that it lasted for so long, almost unending. It was a defining moment in the war history, one which prevented the Biafran soldiers from gaining access to overrun the Western region of Nigeria, particularly, Ibadan and Lagos that were the seat of the Western Region government and Nigeria’s federal capital, respectively.

This battle epitomised the defeat suffered the most by the ravaging Biafran Army which, consequently, led to the prevention of the Biafran troops from gaining further territorial leverage after they had captured the Midwestern states.

Ore is a gateway town, situated in a vantage position between the Western and the Eastern parts of Nigeria. The historic town was so important to Nigeria’s continuity that it could sway victory to the enemy if captured during the civil war by the Biafran soldiers. The Nigerian Army has a real test and fierce battle for the soul of Nigeria at Ore. The Biafran Army which could not withstand the firepower of Nigerian troops retreated and the war was eventually restricted to the Eastern side of the federation.

Vestiges of the civil war are still evident in this town and in our history till date as “o le ku, ija ore” was coined as a Yoruba maxim in describing the great military battle at Ore during the Nigerian civil war.

In spite of the significance of Ore in the history the country and its strategic gateway location between the Western and the Eastern axes of Nigeria, Ore remained a very semi-urban town with poor infrastructure to support its huge population that comprised people from different parts of the country who have found a home in the town as traders and farmers.

Also, Ore’s potential as a viable transit gate between the western and the eastern parts of Nigeria is another reason that its population is booming. The town has, however, been growing organically from its modest beginning after the civil war without no concerted effort by successive federal and state administrations to address infrastructure deficit of this this historic town. More importantly, to develop it into a functional city with full options of infrastructural development that will support her ever-teeming population after the civil war.

Ore now enjoys the attention it deserves since the inception of the administration of Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN). Governor Akeredolu has made true his promise of making Ore, a once-theatre-of-war town into becoming one of the industrial hubs of Nigeria.

Akeredolu gave hope to Ore town as it joins the league of industrialised areas of the country. It is a common sight passing through Ore to see massive constructions of overhead bridges and link roads on the expressway to Lagos, Benin and Ondo town. These will serve as infrastructure support baseline for Ore as an industrial hub.



When these multi-billion Naira constructions are completed, it will put an end to the traffic jam on the popular Ore Junction and adequately ease the flow of traffic on the notorious transit axis of Lagos-Benin-Ondo Road in Ore town that was partially caused by the location of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) deport at the entrance of the expressway in Ore.

In his determination to ensure the realisation of Ore as an industrial hub and as a solid economic base for Ondo State, Governor Akeredolu has embarked on an investment tour to China at the inception of his administration in 2017. That tour gave birth to an entirely new industrial park, now called Ondo Linyi Industrial Park, situated at Ore. The park is an offshoot of Linyi Municipal Government of Shandong in China where Akeredolu signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Linyi Municipal Government of Shandong Province of the People’s Republic of China in 2017.

Since that MoU was signed, many Investors from the Shandong Province of China have made good their promise to set up different industries in this park.

Already, Linyi Industrial Park in Ore is bubbly as human and vehicular traffic are common features of the landscape of this once-empty space in the woods. Different companies have set up plants and warehouses while many other companies are undergoing construction.

A paper mill, a textile company, an ethanol plant, a medium-density fiberboard, a high-density fiberboard and plywood factories and a host of other agriculture products-based companies have commenced production at the Ore Industrial Park.

With the completion of the paper mill, the ethanol plant, the plywood factory and other industries, they will provide combined efforts in excess of over 20,000 direct jobs while many more double that figure are expected to benefit from jobs created down the value chain for residents of the state.

The choice of Ore as the nation’s industrial hub was apt and a decision well thought out by Akeredolu because the town is strategically located between the western and the eastern gateway of the country.

The people in the community are mostly settlers. The land is devoid of the activities of the notorious land grabbers who often prevent ease of doing business in some other traditional settlements.

The proximity of Ore to Lagos ports through the proposed bridge by the Akeredolu’s administration over the Atlantic Ocean to Lekki in Lagos is the icing on the cake that makes Ore town the perfect location for the nation’s next industrial hub where thousands of hectares of land are in abundant and waiting for development.

Sooner than later, Ore will become an industrial hub.

Many established companies in Nigeria are now taking advantage of the opportunities provided by the Ondo State government in assisting prospective businesses in securing land free to establish their factories upon request. More than 50 existing companies in Nigeria have made inquiries on how to relocate their companies to Ore and be part of the industrial revolution going on in Ondo State.

No doubt, Akeredolu has, through his performance indices across the nook and cranny of the state, etched his name in the history of the state as a visionary leader; one with inexorable desire for the growth and development of his people.

SOURCE :https://thenationonlineng.net/ore-from-theatre-of-war-to-industrial-hub/

Good moves

picture ?