Odu’a declares N698m profit, cultivates tomatoes

Odu’a Investment Company Ltd has declared N698 million as profit before tax for the financial year ended in December 31, 2017.

The company, owned by Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti states, also approved payment of N277.78 million as dividends.

The Group Chairman of the company, Mr Olusola Akinwumi, who spoke at the company’s annual general meeting on Wednesday at the Cocoa House, Ibadan, said despite various challenges in the country, the company had experienced growth in business and increase in the dividends to the shareholders in the last four years.

The company had paid N920 million as dividends to the shareholders between 2014 and 2017.

The Odu’a Group recorded revenue of N4.068 billion in 2017, amounting to a 3.8 per cent increment over 2016 figure of N3.918 billion.
Akinwunmi said: “The Group’s skewed assets in real estate adversely affected the business. A sizable number of clients and tenants in rented commercial, retail and residential properties defaulted in rents payment. Overall cost increases.”

The chairman said in aligning with the priority sectors of the Federal Government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), the company was pursuing sustainable development projects in the area of agriculture, services and infrastructure.

He disclosed that the company was undertaking commercial cultivation of tomatoes on a portion of its 3,500 hectares arable farmland in Imeko, Ogun State. The ultimate, he said, was to establish a processing plant for tomato paste and concentrate for value addition and socio-economic development of the community and achieve technical expertise for competent Nigerians.”

Akinwunmi also disclosed that the company recently embarked on full a buy-back of minority holding, leading to 100 per cent ownership of one of the moribund manufacturing outfits in the Group, Cocoa Industries Limited, Ikeja (the erstwhile producer of Vitalo Cocoa beverages) for better utilisation of its facilities in joint ventures.

The Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the company, Mr Adewale Raji, in his report, focused on the company’s growth strategy, which was predicted on unlocking value from its asset base for sustainable development projects and business process improvement.

He said: “Over the last few years, the board and management have dug into the Group’s rich history, listened to shareholders and stakeholders alike and consulted widely to come to the realisation that achieving sustainable growth requires diversification of its income sources from preponderances of real estate assets is fundamental to securing its future.”