As part of a deliberate policy to boost Ease of Doing Business, Edo State Government has organised a one-day strategy engagement workshop to deepen the State’s Business Enabling Reforms Action Plan (BERAP).
The strategy engagement geared towards the presentation of the 2025 Progress Report and Preparatory/Validation of 2026 Business Enabling Reforms Action Plan was organised by the State Government in collaboration with stakeholders in the private sector.
Recall that Nigeria’s subnational ease of doing business surveys conducted by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), chaired by the then Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, between 2021 and 2023, had ranked Edo State in the 34th and 37th positions, respectively, in the country.
The PEBEC had assessed states and FCT, Abuja, in six key indicators crucial for business success in Nigeria, including infrastructure, security and stable environment, transparency and accessibility of information, regulatory environment, skills and labour, and economic opportunities.
In line with his administration policy to change the narratives under his SHINE Agenda, Governor Monday Okpebholo-led Government organised the strategy workshop to engage key stakeholders to strengthen the regulatory and institutional environment of the State under the State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER) Programme.
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The critical reforms stakeholders which cut- across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) and in the private sector through the State Ease of Doing Business (EODB) Council are mandated to review the implementation status of the 2025 Business Enabling Reform Action Plan (BERAP) as well as to prepare and revalidate the 2026 Business Enabling Reform Action Plan (BERAP).
In his welcome address, Emmanuel Okoebor, Edo State Commissioner for Finance, said the engagement was in line with the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) Sub-national Ease of Doing Business Indicators and the Governor Okpebholo’s project – SHINE Agenda.
Okoebor, who is also the Chairman of the State Ease of Doing Business Council, said the gathering was not just another policy meeting, but a strategic engagement that underscored the collective responsibility of stakeholders to strengthen the regulatory and institutional environment of the State under the State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER) Programme.
He said it also reflected the stakeholders’ shared resolve to continuously improve how the Government serves businesses and citizens alike.
“The Ease of Doing Business initiative is a cornerstone of Nigeria’s national reform agenda. Since the establishment of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) in 2016, deliberate efforts have been made to remove critical bottlenecks, reduce bureaucracy, and simplify business processes across the country.
“These reforms are designed to make business operations simpler, faster, more transparent, and more predictable, particularly at the sub-national level where most businesses operate.
“In Edo State, the establishment of the Ease of Doing Business Council and its Secretariat represents our commitment to domesticating these federal reforms. Through this platform, we coordinate inter-agency actions, drive policy coherence, and implement reform programmes such as SABER, a performance-based initiative supported by the Federal Government and the World Bank, which rewards states for tangible and measurable improvements in the business environment.
“Today’s engagement is therefore timely and strategic. It giallows uso review the implementation status of the 2025 BERAP, identify gaps, consolidate gains, and collaboratively design a robust, realistic, and impactful BERAP 2026 that aligns with both national priorities and Edo State’s SHINE development agenda.
“In doing so, we are guided by the PEBEC Sub-national Ease of Doing Business Indicators, which assess performance across six critical pillars and seventeen sub-indicators.
“These indicators are not abstract metrics. They directly reflect the daily experiences of entrepreneurs, investors, and small businesses operating in our state. Improving our performance in these areas translates into jobs, investments, innovation, and inclusive economic growth.
“Your presence here today underscores the fact that business environment reforms cannot succeed in silos. They require strong collaboration across MDAs, active engagement with the private sector, and clear ownership by designated EoDB/SABER Liaison Officers who drive reforms within their respective institutions.
“As we deliberate over the next sessions, let us remain focused on outcomes—reforms that are practical, measurable, and impactful. Let us design a BERAP 2026 that not only improves our rankings, but more importantly, improves the lived experience of doing business in Edo State”, he said.
Earlier, Bright Omorogbe, the Focal Person for the Edo State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER) Programme, said the workshop was put together not only to review the outcomes of the 2025, but to also create a roadmap geared towards having a more friendly and enabling environment for businesses and investors to operate and thrive.
Omorogbe said at the end of the workshop participants would come up with a strategic plans to be submitted to the State Executive Council for approval.
He said the document to be developed by all the stakeholders, including the private sector, would help to streamline all the bottlenecks that had been militating against the ease of doing business in the State.
“So what this Business Enabling Reform Action Plan does is to set the direction for the government and the n with stakeholders having input into it to ensure that all the things that they want to see going forward are reflected in the documents.
“So in the documents we will look at tax harmonisation, locking up of business owners’ shops, power and energy, and security issues. We also have things that will make the business environment more friendly, investor-friendly, and then to make the economy grow and then for us as a government to have economic growth and development in the states”, he added.
