Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State on Monday charged the Commonwealth’s 56-member states to spend money on Africa, notably Lagos.
Sanwo-Olu stated Commonwealth member states ought to convey their capital, expertise, and different experience, promising that they’ll discover not simply market and alternative, but in addition partnership and relationship.
He stated the Commonwealth’s biggest benefit was not merely its shared language, shared legal guidelines or shared historical past but in addition its individuals. He stated nowhere was that benefit extra vivid, dynamic or consequential than in Africa.
Addressing the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Commerce and Funding Summit held at Mansion Home, London, on Monday, Sanwo-Olu stated Lagos was prepared for partnerships and relationships with international buyers.
The theme of the opening session was, “The Commonwealth’s Benefit.”
The occasion was attended by Chairman of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Funding Council, Lord Marland; Secretary-Basic of the Commonwealth, Shirley Botchwey; Deputy Prime Minister of Malta, Dr Ian Borg; Girl Mayor of the Metropolis of London Company, Dame Susan Langley; Heads of Authorities; Ministers; Excessive Commissioners; Captains of Trade; World Traders; and Enterprise Leaders, amongst others.
Sanwo-Olu, who was the keynote speaker, acknowledged, “Africa is house to the world’s youngest inhabitants. By 2050, one in 4 individuals on this earth might be African. The Commonwealth already counts 56-member states with a mixed inhabitants of two.7 billion.
“A big and rising share of that quantity lives on our continent. If the Commonwealth is to stay related — not merely as a sentimental compact, however as a real engine of world commerce and funding — then Africa have to be central to its technique. And inside Africa, Lagos have to be a part of that dialog.
“We dwell in an age of fracturing – of retreating globalisation, of tariff partitions rising like storm barricades, of geopolitical uncertainty that rattles provide chains and spooks buyers. In such a second, the Commonwealth presents one thing uncommon and worthwhile: a community constructed not on worry, however on belief.”
Sanwo-Olu defined, “Fifty-six nations that share foundational commitments — to the rule of legislation, to democratic governance, and to open markets — represent a exceptional platform for doing enterprise with confidence.
“The Commonwealth’s benefit will solely be totally unlocked once we deal with rising markets not as recipients of funding however as companions in shaping the phrases of it.
“That’s the reason we welcome frameworks like blended finance and help AfCFTA — the African Continental Free Commerce Space — which has the potential to create the world’s largest single market by GDP protection.
“And that’s the reason Lagos is investing in its port, its airport, its rail corridors, and its expertise infrastructure — as a result of we perceive that to draw international capital, you will need to first construct the foundations that make capital really feel at house.”
Talking on Lagos State and his administration’s dedication to delivering the dividends of democracy to over 20 million residents via the THEMES+ developmental agenda, Sanwo-Olu stated, “Lagos is Nigeria’s {economic} capital. It generates roughly a 3rd of Nigeria’s GDP, and, have been it a standalone financial system, it might rank among the many high 5 in sub-Saharan Africa.
“In 2023, we have been re-elected on a mandate to deepen what we had began – to rework Lagos right into a twenty-first-century megacity that works for its individuals.
“We’re delivering on that mandate. Amongst many different issues, our Blue Line and Purple Line rail initiatives are actually operational — the primary metro rail system in West Africa. We’re about to fee one of many continent’s largest youngsters’s hospitals, and we’re digitising our income and land administration techniques.”
He acknowledged, “Now we have invested closely in street infrastructure, in water, in safety, and in social inclusion. And we’re doing this not just by ready for presidency budgets however by actively courting, structuring, and sustaining public-private partnerships with buyers from throughout the Commonwealth and past.
“Our T.H.E.M.E.S.+ Agenda — masking Transportation, Well being, Training, the Economic system, the Making of a twenty first Century State, Leisure and Tourism, Safety, and critically, the ‘+’ of social inclusion, gender fairness, and youth empowerment — shouldn’t be a marketing campaign doc. It’s a governance structure. And I say to each investor on this room: that structure is open for enterprise.”
Sanwo-Olu disclosed that the state will host Spend money on Lagos 3.0, its flagship funding promotion summit, on June 8 and 9 at Eko Inns and Suites, Victoria Island. He stated the version might be convened in strategic partnership with the Commonwealth Enterprise and Funding Council.
In keeping with Sanwo-Olu, “Spend money on Lagos shouldn’t be a convention. It’s a transaction platform and the premier event via which Lagos State formally engages the worldwide funding neighborhood—presenting the state’s {economic} potential, its enabling coverage setting, and the particular, bankable alternatives out there to home and overseas buyers throughout each main sector of our financial system.
“Spend money on Lagos 3.0 represents a decisive step ahead in scale and ambition. Our partnership with CWEIC implies that for the primary time, the summit might be actively positioned to draw worldwide delegates and buyers from throughout the Commonwealth – increasing its attain, deepening its affect, and firmly situating Lagos inside the broader structure of Commonwealth commerce and funding.”
Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Commerce, and Funding, Mrs. Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, whereas talking throughout a plenary session, tagged, “Mobilising Capital for Progress in Rising Markets,” delved in sensible phrases into what Lagos was doing and what the state wanted from the comity of countries.
Segun James
Times Nigeria