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| Chief Operating Officer, The Elevation Church, Tunji Iyiola; Director of Research & Chief Economist, Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), Dr Olusegun Omisakin; Executive Secretary/CEO, Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Yewande Sadiku; Co-Lead Pastor, The Elevation Church, Bolarinwa Akinlabi; Lead Pastor, The Elevation Church/Convener, Vantage Forum, Godman Akinlabi and CEO, Access Bank PLC, Dr Herbert Wigwe at the 2020 Vantage Forum themed ”Africa’s 1.3Billion People Market: Harnessing Opportunities Through Business Innovation” in Lagos, today. |
At the 6th edition of the Vantage Forum, an annual high-profile business event organized by the Elevation Church (TEC), the business leaders analysed the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), its economic implications and how Nigerians can maximize the opportunities it presents through innovation.
The AfCFTA was created by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement among 54 of the 55 African Union nations. The agreement was brokered by the African Union (AU) in March 2018. It requires members to remove tariffs from goods, allowing free access to commodities, goods, and services across the continent.
Herbert Wigwe, a respected banking expert, highlighted the benefits to be derived from the AfCFTA by Nigerians. He stated that the initiative will boost intra-African trade from 16 to 52 per cent, making Nigerian Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) more competitive with access to a larger market.
“The AfCFTA could be the most important opportunity offered to African countries in a long time. This is because, for many years, the absence of a regional economic framework has limited the continent’s development,” Wigwe said
According to the banker, the benefit of the initiative to Nigerians includes opportunities for business expansion, removal of tariffs on commodities, infrastructural development and free trade.
However, to take advantage of these opportunities, Nigeria needs to increase the quality of its products and improve its infrastructure, he added.
According to Yewande Sadiku, a senior Federal Government official, Africa is the ‘flavour of the moment’. This is because of the future prospects of the continent. For instance, 60 per cent of the African population is under 35, indicating a youthful and vibrant population.
“Nigeria has a youthful population and they need to be primed for readiness to take advantage of these opportunities. To maximize the prospects it presents, the private sector needs to be heavily involved in the actualisation of the AfCfTA,” Sadiku said.
The investment expert also listed the things needed to convert these exciting prospects into value, including skills, capital, infrastructure and marketing resources.
Seasoned economist, Olusegun Omisakin carried out an analysis of the current state of the Nigerian economy, including current trends, what can take the country back into recession and how to position to take advantage of key indices.
Emphasizing on the importance of security in enhancing business activities, Omisakin said:
“The foundation of all business activities is based on the premise that goods and services are secure. Insecurity increases risk and raises the cost of doing business.”
In his remarks, Godman Akinlabi, the Chief Host and Lead Pastor of TEC, in the midst of the economic complexity in the country, there is always ‘certainty in uncertainty,’ explaining that getting access to the right information can give a measure of certainty.
“To make greatness common, we must stand on the premise that everyone has a seed of greatness. At TEC, we organize events like this to get people access to the kind of information that will increase greatness in them,” he said.
TEC has hosted Vantage Forum for six years with each one focusing on a different topic. This year’s edition is themed ‘Harnessing Business Opportunities through Innovation in Africa’s 1.3 Billion People Market.’
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