Business

Okonjo-Iweala, Mo Ibrahim, Adesina key speakers Ehingbeti as summit opens

Notable business leaders and political figures across the globe will be joining the private sector in setting agenda for Lagos State towards the next decade at ‘Ehingbeti’, the Lagos Economic Summit.

This was disclosed on Sunday in a statement titled ‘Catriona Laing, Mo Ibrahim, Adesina, Okonjo-Iweala to speak at Ehingbeti’.

The statement said the summit was living-up to its reputation 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 mount the podium at the sessions.

Themed ‘For a greater Lagos: Setting the tone for the next decade’, Ehingbeti 2021 had 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, it stated.

It said it also offered perspectives on how to manage the peculiar socio-economic landscape of Lagos State in the coming decade.

The Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget and Co-Chair of Ehingbeti, Sam Egube, said, “Our realities from 2000 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 22 million population and ensure that Lagos remains on the path of continuous growth.”

He added, “These considerations are the groundwork of the Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration THEMES Agenda, but translating the agenda to benefits for our people will require collaborations 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.”

The statement said Ehingbeti is an ingenuous socio-economic apparatus that had 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 had been hosted by successive governments in Lagos State since the beginning of the 4th republic, it stated.