Speeches

Closing Ceremony Of The 5th Lagos Economic Summit - Ehingbeti 2010

Apr 22, 2010 - Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, it is no overstatement to say that I am truly delighted to be back home to join you all at this closing ceremony after being at the mercy of a very angry Icelandic volcano that hit at the underbelly of the aviation industry.

I think also that I do not exaggerate if I assert that the investment objectives of this Summit have been achieved somewhat in my absence since the Completion Board meeting for the Lagos Bond and the Opening Ceremony of this 5th Economic Summit which were scheduled for me, went ahead successfully I am told because the Deputy Governor, the Honourable Commissioners, Special Advisers and the public service stood in admirably in my absence to keep the business of Government going. It should not have been otherwise.

These are clear indications that this Government is a team that will run irrespective of personalities and shows clearly that institutions are being built in Lagos that will survive beyond the builders and this is a most important risk assessment consideration for investors that I believe we have scored very well and I commend all members of the team especially Her Excellency, the Deputy Governor.

Secondly, the successful completion rof the 2nd Tranche of the Bond and its over-subscription is probably the strongest message of investor readiness that our Government could send out.

It is the message of the local people's belief in their own economy that attracts external investment. Simply put, charity has began from the home front and Lagos is reversing the paradigm for attracting external investment by first encouraging local investment.

I have of course been following the sessions and the exit impressions and issues raised by investors ranging from Agriculture to traffic Tourism to power, planning approvals and governance response and I assure you that all of these issues are work in progress either awaiting policy conclusions, legislative intervention or executive action.

Whatever the levels of implementation, I assert very emphatically that processes have started, our journey is underway and I assure you that in 2 (two) years those of you who will be returning to the next summit and those you will bring along will only witness further progress in our State in these areas.

Our State will also be initiating co-operation with other States to drive change in areas where the Federal Government has responsibility that raise National concerns about progress and implementation. Already, we have championed the hosting of a Summit of Sub-national leaders including other Governors, on the issue of the environment, climate change and renewable energy for May 2010 and we expect to drive collaborations of this sort in other areas as we go on.

As has been observed in the keynote speech, we stand in competition with other major cities of the world for economic attention and investment capital, and as I said in my opening address, no amount of economic warfare by empires and economies that are suffering diminishing returns can blunt the competitive edge that we now command because emerging markets hold the key to the future and growth of global business.

It is a window of opportunity that our team is determined to harness because we are prepared.

Our commitment to law and order, security of lives and properties and a stable political environment remains at the heart of our policy thrusts and the results show increasing safety and security statistics that better those of our competitors.

AS we bid you all what I consider temporary good byes, we look forward to seeing you shortly and doing business with you.

I thank you for honouring our invitation to the land of immense opportunities and possibilities.

Eko o ni baje o!

Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN
Governor of Lagos State