Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okechukwu Enelamah has said the ease of doing business in Nigeria has been greatly enhanced since the advent of the present administration.
Dr. Enelamah, while delivering an address at the Stakeholders’ Forum on Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria organised by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council in Lagos on Friday said this has made it possible for greater business inflows into the country.
“What we call an inflow is not just about the money physically, but also the commitments that have come. So, if you look at the infrastructural projects that we are doing, there is N20b or more infrastructure projects with the China EXIM bank. It has been signed and it’s now being implemented around railways and related infrastructure. There is an agreement with General Electric for which $2b has been committed in the last one year.”
Speaking further, Dr. Enelamah, who is also the Vice Chair of Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) said the ease of doing business in Nigeria has been greatly enhanced in the last one year, paving the way for both foreign and local investors.
While welcoming participants, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment and also Secretary to Presidential Enabling Business Environment Secretariat (EBES, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole said EBES aims to make Nigeria an increasingly easier place to do business for investors.
She said based on the council’s engagement with the private sector on their most pressing needs, EBES has zeroed on three key areas in which to enhance ease of doing business in Nigeria.
“These three areas were prioritized—Entry and Exit of goods, entry and exit of people as well as government transparency which entails clarity and consistency of information needed by the private sector to do business across all reform areas”
She explained that EBES has conducted analysis to outline a set of high impact initiatives to drive change. “We have detailed out concrete actions required and will aggressively pursue those over the next 60-180 days.”
Other key participants at the forum include: Commissioner of physical planning and Urban development, Wasiu Anifowoshe, Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor on Urban Development, Mrs. Yetunde Onabule. Others are: Special Adviser to Registrar General, Corporate Affairs Commission, Garba Abubakar; Deputy Director, ICT, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Kunle Olley; Vice Chairman, Nigeria Electricity Regulatory commission (NERC), Engr Sanusi Garba; Chief Technical Officer, Eko Distribution Company (EDC), Mahendra Pandey and several others from both the public and private sectors.