Programme
Wednesday May 8
Plenary Sessions
Thursday May 9
Industry-focused and Special Briefings
Wednesday May 8
Plenary Sessions
Keynote Address: The Roadmap to Nigeria’s Fiscal and Economic Transformation: Short, Medium, and Long-Term Outcomes
Panel Topic: From Palliatives to High-Quality Jobs for Shared Prosperity
Panel Session Summary & Objectives
The Federal Government, working with the state governments, has responded to the vulnerability of Nigerians to its introduction of essential market reforms by providing palliatives and cash grants to cushion the harsh effects of the policies. However, these measures only provide limited, short-term social protection to citizens. This panel session will address how to build effective social safety nets and, more importantly, return the economy to the path of sustainable economic growth and development. Our panellists – comprising notable policymakers and development experts – will provide actionable insights on how to generate high-quality jobs, reduce poverty, support human capital development, increase local productive capacity, boost export earnings, and raise the productivity of the Nigerian economy.
Keynote Address: Macroeconomic and Financial Stability: Communicating the Outlook
Panel Topic: Revitalising Industries and Markets
Panel Session Summary & Objectives
The Nigerian economy has experienced an acute price instability, with inflation rising above 28% and the value of the naira depreciating against major reserve currencies. While the Central Bank of Nigeria, under its current leadership, has prioritised price stability and has introduced key financial market reforms, achieving a soft landing for the economy would require revitalisation of industries and markets. This panel session will generate ideas for more effectively achieving economic and price stability, improving the business environment, stabilising markets, expanding credit to the real sector, supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and attracting foreign investments (Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)).
Keynote Address: Transforming Nigeria’s Population Health: Crowding in Policy, Market, and Social Actions
Panel Topic: Raising the Productivity of the Healthcare Sector: Challenges, Solutions, and Opportunities
Panel Session Summary & Objectives
The goal of economic policy, either fiscal or monetary, is to enhance the welfare of citizens. Similarly, the goal of health policy is to enhance the wellness of citizens and make them productive. Invariably, health policy targets the social welfare of citizens. This insight is uniquely reflected in both the name of the ministry, and the appointment of a public health specialist of global stature as the “Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare.” This panel session will discuss the idea of all-of-government and all-of-society approaches to health in Nigeria. It will dissect the challenges of the health sector in Nigeria, proffer practical solutions, and highlight investment opportunities to support innovation and a momentous improvement in “population health” as would be discussed in the keynote address for the session.
Keynote Address: Future-Proofing Nigeria’s Economy and Social Welfare: A Sustainability Approach
Panel Topic: Future-Proofing Nigeria’s Economy and Social Welfare: A Sustainability Approach
Panel Session Summary & Objectives
The Nigerian economy has experienced a downward trend in macroeconomic data. However, over the last decades, the economy had strengthened and created opportunities of billions of dollars in both local and foreign investment. It also witnessed the resurgence of the middle-class. But with each external shock and domestic policy issues, we have seen the accentuation of boom and bust. Leading the discussion on “Future-Proofing Nigeria’s Economy and Social Welfare: A Sustainability Approach” will be an economist of global renown. The panel session will proffer solutions for achieving not only long-term economic stability in Nigeria, but also social and environmental well-being. The focus will be on successfully transitioning into a technologically advanced, resilient, and inclusive economy, while regularly assessing policy efforts to optimise outcomes.
Thursday May 9
Industry-focused and Special Briefings
Panel Topic: Nigeria’s Blue Economy: Prospects, Opportunities, and Challenges
Panel Session Summary & Objectives
According to the Commonwealth, the worldwide blue or ocean economy is valued at around $1.5 trillion per year, making it the seventh largest economy in the world, and is set to double by 2030 to $3 trillion. The blue economy encompasses all economic activities related to oceans, seas, and coasts. Among the recent impetuses for higher growth prospects of the Nigerian blue economy is the creation of the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy and the extension of the Nigerian seaward continental boundaries from 200 to 220 nautical miles by the United Nations’ Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. But the Nigerian blue economy requires more policy support, market frameworks, and investments to deliver on the prospects of the sector. This industry-focused session will bring together the stakeholders in the blue economy to address the challenges of the sector and provide insights on harnessing the growth opportunities.
Keynote Address: Mobilising Investments for Nigeria’s Green Growth
Panel Session Summary & Objectives
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) defines the green economy as low-carbon, resource-efficient, and socially-inclusive economy. According to the UN agency, in a green economy, growth in employment and incomes are driven by public and private investment into economic activities, infrastructure, and assets that enable reduction in carbon emissions and pollution, enhance energy and resource efficiency, and prevent the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. Opportunities for these investments abound in several sectors of the Nigerian economy, including tech, manufacturing, power, and transportation. This special industry-focused session will bring together stakeholders, including policymakers and investors, to deliberate on actualising the prospects of the Nigerian green economy.
Two state governments will anchor special briefings on sub-national policy reforms and the investment climates of their states.