Charles Nwaoguji and Merit Ibe
President of the LCCI, Babatunde Ruwase, has said the 2019 Lagos International Trade Fair is centred on connecting businesses and creating value.
Being the 33rd edition of the Fair, Ruwase noted that the rationale for the subject this year is to buttress the importance of robust business interactions to generate wealth and create value for the betterment of Nigerian citizens and the economy. He said the Fair involved government agencies, domestic investors, foreign investors, bilateral trade agencies, multinational conglomerate and financial institutions like UBA Plc.
The Fair, he said, included some states like Anambra, Akwa Ibom, Plateau, Kwara, FCT, Kebbi, Ogun, state governments, federal parastatals, and agencies, hundreds of large, medium and small scale indigenous businesses.
He said international community was not left out in the business connection as 15 countries like China, Japan, Ghana, Ethiopia, India, European Union,Indonesia, Taiwan,Bangladesh, Cameeoun, Benin Republic and others were on ground.
From the official catalogue, China came with two delegations with about 350 exhibitors, Japan with about 38, Ghana with about 39 exhibitors.
The LCCI president noted that the Nigerian population, estimated at 200 million people, and African population currently at 1.2billion could be converted to wealth for the continent by connecting businesses which increase demand for banking services, including cross border cash transfer, , digital banking and loans, etc.
Commenting on the economy, which has moved 15 places upward in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business, he noted that the chamber was proud to be associated with the UBA, which is the headline partner for this year’s Fair.
He added that UBA has a place in the history of banking in Nigeria, having 70 years of uninterrupted banking operations with diverse customers in Nigeria and across Africa.