•••Bola Tinubu and President Muhammadu Buhari: Mending fences
President Muhammadu Buhari, Bola Tinubu, former Governor of Lagos State, 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, are expected to lead the session on strengthening Governance, Institution and legislation at the Ehingbeti, the Lagos Economic Summit scheduled to hold from next week Tuesday to Thursday, 2021.
Themed ‘For a Greater Lagos: Setting The Tone For The Next Decade’, Ehingbeti 2021 with about 150 speakers from across the world are expected to discuss at the virtual summit and deliberate on pragmatic optimization of the inherent opportunities in Africa’s 5th largest economy and offer perspectives on how to manage the peculiar socio-economic landscape of Lagos State in the coming decade.
Other speakers billed for the summit include Dr Akinwunmi Adesina, President, African Development Bank, ADB, Amina Mohammed UN Deputy Secretary-General and Mohammed Yahaya, UNDP Resident Representative, Catriona Laing, British Higher Commissioner to Nigeria, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, the Deputy Governor and Mudashiru Obasa, Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly.
Also expected are: 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 and 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.”
The state Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget and Co-Chair of Ehingbeti, Sam Egube, explained that the themes to be discussed at the conference, 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.
“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 22million population and ensure that Lagos remains on the path of continuous growth.
“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,” Egube stated.
