Notable persons like the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), the President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, Bishop Matthew Kukah, former Minister of Industry and Chairman of African Capital Alliance, Dr Okechukwu Enemalah and several other key stakeholders in Nigeria’s Business sphere gathered for a packed session at this year’s Inspiration Conference 2020 themed Galvanized for Geometric Growth
The main session was taken by Dr Akinwumi Adesina, who started out by expressing gratitude for the opportunity to be there, despite his tight schedule. He shared how success largely depends on one’s ability to see visions and how ultimately hard work is indeed the only path to success. The made emphasis on the need for persistence and patience as in his words, Success comes in trickles. Dr Adesina shared on the recent changes economic changes currently in the works that would help create an enabling environment for Nigerians especially in the Agriculture sector, as he maintains that the new wave of successful entrepreneurs in this decade will stem from the Agriculture Sector. He also touched on an Entrepreneurship Bank for youths that will cater to the younger generation who have viable ideas but no portfolio or collateral to drive their innovations. Before closing, he disclosed that unlike popular opinion, the elderly are in a better position to succeed as entrepreneurs and should not exit the entrepreneurship space for teeming youths as he begs to differ that ‘younger people are just smarter‘ a statement made by Facebook Icon, Mark Zuckerberg.
Prof Yemi Osinbajo gave the Keynote speech and opened by stating that considering Dr Akinwumi Adesina’s recent statements, he might just be considering a career in entrepreneurship. He touched on the latest developments in Africa, and how Nigeria remains a key player in the latest uprising of the last biggest trade economy of the world after China’s wave. Professor Yemi Osinbajo disclosed the latest influx of investment into the country, citing the Technology space and why Nigeria remains a profitable place for investment despite its niggling growth challenges due to its sheer size and as such should not be compared with other counterparts within the African Continent. He also touched on how several policies made recently have made Nigeria one of the best places for Investments to thrive such as the AfcFta, the new Finance Bill and other notable positive additions.
During the Panel Discussions, questions from the audience were entertained where the Vice President clarified that foreign investment in Nigeria would no way sabotage the efforts of the Nigerian Entrepreneur and how steps are currently underway to help assuage the currently affected people who are mostly the people who offer services with human labour. A noteworthy takeaway from one of his responses is how although the recent Africa Free Trade Deal signed is created and will help Africans reach more markets, Nigerians will need to ensure that they offer quality as otherwise, they might be unable to compete and get phased out of the market. The Vice President made emphasis on how Nigeria is really at the moment the best place to be as most foreign investors are currently looking inwards due to the vast opportunities the country offers and as such Nigerians should take advantage.
Bishop Kukah during the Panel Discussion also brought to the forefront the ongoing security challenges the country currently faces and how extra care needs to be taken to ensure that when the borders get reopened, measures to stem terrorism and properly identify potential traders from people with ulterior motives are addressed. He also made mention of the need for Christians to uphold their moral values in business and not set it aside for only religious purposes.
Altogether, the Conference could be termed a huge success, with several subgroup sessions taking place after the main programme offering valuable insights on the Energy, Agriculture, SME’s Entertainment and Technology Sectors. Watch the video for Plus TV Africa’s interviews with key attendees at the Conference.
