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The Edo Summit 2022, also tagged ‘Alaghodaro Investment Summit,’ begins today November 11 to Sunday 13 in Benin City with focus on tech innovation, tax reforms, and investment promotion for the oil-rich state of over five million people.
This year’s theme: “Edo’s Transformation: Partnerships, Resilience, Impact,” will be featuring presentations by panelists that include Executive Secretary/CEO, Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Saratu Umar; Head of Transitions, MasterCard Foundation, Ukinebo Dare; Executive Vice Chairman, Signal Alliance Technology Holdings Limited, Collins Onuegbu; and Group Managing Director, Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc, Omoboyede Olusanya.
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In its sixth edition, the Alaghodaro Investment Summit targets private investors, industry leaders and other stakeholders to leverage the increasing opportunities in policy and infrastructure support created by Edo government to make the state a top destination for investment in Nigeria.
The yearly event marks the anniversary of Governor Godwin Obaseki in office to showcase the steady transformation of Edo into an investment-friendly state; and to also promore partnerships with economic actors.
Edo state has a positive investors’ rating as an “emerging investment haven with sound reforms in critical sectors such as land administration, company registration and the positive disposition of the government to investment, domestic and foreign.”
According to senior government officials in Benin City, Edo remains committed to driving an encouraging ‘Ease of Doing Business’ and the three-day Edo Summit will encourage further dialogue on leveraging technology to build capacity and foster new entrepreneurship; enhance productivity and inclusive growth across sectors; and create a more friendly not hostile tax regime.
The event will commence with a State Banquet hosted by Governor Godwin Obaseki on Friday
One of the conference plenaries is ‘Achieving Competitiveness,’ with discussions focused on skills development, infrastructure, tax reforms, investment promotion and technology innovation. The panelists include Partner, KPMG Professional Services, Dimeji Salaudeen; the Chairman, Task-force on IGR, Edo State Internal Revenue Service, John Inegbedion. The moderator is CEO, Agon Continental Limited, Nnanna Ude.
The second plenary: ‘Capitalizing on Opportunities,’ will focus on agriculture, retail, sports, opportunities in the mining sector. It will be moderated by the Partner, Udo Udoma & Bello Osagie, Ozofu Ogiemudia. The panelists include the Group Managing Director, Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc, Omoboyede Olusanya, the Chairman and Managing Director, Persianas Group, Tayo Amusan; Founder of Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, Dr. Atedo Peterside; and Founder, Silverbird Group, Ben Murray-Bruce.
According to Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on Media Projects, Mr. Crusoe Osagie, other speakers at the investment summit include Edo State Commissioner for Finance, Budget, Economic Planning and Development, Joseph Eboigbe; CEO, Sport Nigeria Ltd/GTE, Nkechi Obi; Managing Director, Saro International, Mr. Rasheed Sarumi; and Edo State Commissioner for Mining and Energy, Ethan Uzamere.
Other highlights of the event are a golf tournament on Saturday, November 12 and the launch of Digital Benin website at the Victor Uwaifo Creative Hub and Soundstage.
