Ehingbeti, the Lagos Economic Summit scheduled to hold from next Tuesday to Thursday, is living-up to its repute as Africa’s most practical and result-oriented private sector-led forum for socio-economic and infrastructural development, with the quality of speakers confirmed to discuss at the virtual summit.
Themed ‘For a Greater Lagos: Setting The Tone For The Next Decade’, Ehingbeti 2021 has drawn about 150 speakers from across the world to discuss and deliberate on pragmatic optimisation of the inherent opportunities in Africa’s 5th largest economy as well as offer perspectives on how to manage the peculiar socio-economic landscape of Lagos State in the coming decade.
Leading the array of speakers at the summit are Mo Ibrahim, Founder and Chair of Mo Ibrahim Foundation, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, SAN, Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Ben Akabueze, Director-General, Budget Office of the Federation, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, former Nigerian Minister of Finance, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, President, African Development Bank (ADB), Amina Mohammed UN Deputy Secretary-General and Mohammed Yahaya, UNDP Resident Representative.
While President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Governor of Lagos State and Catriona Laing, British High Commissioner to Nigeria will give Goodwill Messages, the Summit opening address will be delivered by the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, with Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, the Deputy Governor and Mudashiru Obasa, Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly leading the session on strengthening Governance, Institution and Legislation.
Other speakers at the summit include Jordi Borrut Bel, Managing Director, Nigerian Breweries; Prof. Pat Utomi, Centre for Values in Leadership; Prof. Yinka David-West, Academic Director, Lagos Business School; Ambassador Ayoola Olukanni, DG NACCIMA; Muda Yusuf, Director-General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI); Mo Abudu, Founder, Ebony Life TV; Bolanle Austen-Peters, Founder, Terra Culture; Miss Ojoma Ochai, Director, Creative Arts (West Africa), British Africa and others.
The three-day summit, which is structured into segments, will have subject experts speak on specific themes such as “Destination Lagos: Becoming the World’s Best Investment Destination”, “Eko to the World: Shaping the Future of Trade and Economic Independence”, “Lagos, the Industrial Hub”, “Made in Lagos: Shaping the Future of Media, Entertainment, Culture and Tourism”, “Security, Law and Order (Balancing Regulation and Economic Growth)” and “Citizens Participation in Governance”.
Themes to be discussed at the conference also include: “The Role of Transparency, Institutional Effectiveness and Accountability in Governance”, “4th Industrial Revolution: The imperatives and prospects for Digital Economy”, “Digital Transformation for Smart Cities”, “Unleashing Disruptive Innovation for Development”, Shaping the Future of Governance with Technology” and “Roadmap to Shared Prosperity – Ensuring Inclusive Human Development”.
Speaking on the upcoming event, Mr. Sam Egube, Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, who is also Co-Chair of Ehingbeti, said “Our realities from Y2000 when the first Ehingbeti held, exactly 20 years ago, have significantly changed. As a State, we now have to cater to the infrastructural needs of more than 22million population and ensure that Lagos remains on the path of continuous growth”.
“These considerations are the groundwork of the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration’s T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda, but translating the agenda to benefits for our people will require collaboration amongst stakeholders, and a determination to deepen the foundation for sustainable development and growth of our society. So, Ehingbeti 2020 offers us a platform to address all these”, Egube stated.
Ehingbeti is an ingenuous socio-economic apparatus that has contributed significantly to the evolution of Lagos State into a major economy in sub-Saharan Africa and an admirable megacity, with expanding potentials. As a public-private sector roundtable that started as a collaborative effort between Lagos State Government and Business Club Ikeja, Ehingbeti has been hosted by successive governments in Lagos State since the beginning of the 4th republic.
