Nigeria will aim to use the coming World Economic Forum (WEF) Africa, to make a case for its role as the natural economic giant in the world’s last frontier continent, as it hosts a summit of government and business leaders next week.
Nigeria will host heads of state and executives from companies including General Electric Co., (GE), Bharti Enterprise and the Dangote Group, controlled by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote.
The summit, with the theme, ‘Forging Inclusive Growth, Creating Jobs,’ is poised to be the biggest yet, with the World Economic Forum saying that the “interest in the Nigeria meeting has been unprecedented.”
Home to the country with Africa’s largest population and consumer market, Nigeria also recently emerged as the largest economy in Africa, with a GDP of $510 billion.
It is Africa’s largest oil producer, its largest telecommunications market, the second largest beer market, SSA largest cement market, as well as the largest exporter of LNG.
Nigeria received the largest remittance in Africa from its citizens residing overseas of $21 billion in 2013, according to the World Bank, helping to beef up consumer spending and incomes.
The boom in the services which makes up about 50 percent of GDP can be seen in the growth of Nigeria’s hotels sector.
“Nigeria is where the action is and will continue to be,” said Trevor Ward, Principal of the W Hospitality Group, a specialist consultant in the hospitality and leisure industry.
“Nigeria ranks highest in the number of hotels and rooms in the pipelines, in deals signed by developers with international hotel chains,” Ward said.
Nigeria’s GDP could increase by more than 800 percent from today’s levels to over $4.5 trillion by 2050, according to ratings agency, Moody’s.
“With a population of 170 million and oil reserves at around 37.2 billion barrels (or roughly 28 percent of total African reserves), Nigeria is likely to number among the world’s 15 largest economies by 2050,” said Aurelien Mali, VP-Senior Analyst, Moody’s.
Africa’s growth trajectory is projected to remain above 5 per cent in 2014, according WEF, and West Africa is the fastest growing sub-region on the continent, with Nigeria accounting for 65 percent of the sub region’s economic size.
Many investors see the meeting in Nigeria representing the continent’s largest business opportunity, with many large ticket investments already announced.
SABMiller Plc, said this year, it will be increasing its investment in its Nigerian subsidiary, Intafact Beverages Limited, with a further $110 million, in order to triple capacity at its Onitsha brewery.
The Dangote Group plans to invest about $16 billion in cement, petrochemicals and agriculture over the next four years, to boost expansion, including $4.7 billion to complete cement projects in 18 African countries, including Nigeria, Dangote, the company’s president, said in a recent interview. Other big ticket investment commitments have been announced in Nigeria’s power, Oil and gas, Agriculture, Manufacturing, Financial Services and Hard Infrastructure space.
The World Economic Forum is an independent international organisation committed to improving the state of the world, by engaging business, political, academic and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas, and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
The 2014 World Economic Forum on Africa will take place in Abuja, Nigeria, between May 7 and 9, 2014. It is the first time any country in West Africa will be hosting the forum, a signal of Nigeria’s growing economic and political importance on the African continent.
PATRICK ATUANYA
