Managing director, Connect Nigeria Business, an information portal for Medium Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), Emeka Okafor, has explained the creation of the annual Connect Nigeria Business Fair, saying it was to foster collaboration among young entrepreneurs and businesses making sustainable impact in the economy.
Emeka spoke with BusinessDay on Thursday ahead of this year’s fair, scheduled for between March 6 and 7, 2020 at the Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS), Lagos.
According to him, Nigeria Connect had been driving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG-8), which focuses on decent work and economic growth to empower at least one million Nigerian businesses, in view of the importance of MSMEs in any given society.
He said: “SMEs have the potential to create millions of jobs, improve per capita income and export earnings, enhance capacity utilisation in key industries and unlock economic expansion and GDP growth; therefore, it is imperative that the MSME sector be developed.”
He noted that MSMEs as engine of economic growth, which constitute 96 percent of Nigerian businesses, employ 84 percent of the working population and contribute 40 percent of the national GDP, must be encouraged to play their role in the economy.
Emeka stated that thousands of attendees and 150 exhibitors attended the 2019 edition of the fair, adding that this year’s fair promises to be bigger and better. According him, Africa is in a frantic race to end poverty and ensure that her people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030 by meeting the United Nation’s sustainable goals.
He posited that Connect Nigeria, through her annual business fair, advocates building strong business networks and laying down processes that serve to ensure the success of individual enterprise, adding that the company is leading the way in driving partnerships for the United Nation’s SDG 17.
According to him, since 2011, the event has grown from just 500 attendees to over 7,000 attendees; this is by far, Africa’s biggest MSME event.
He said at the 2017 edition; Ajibola Odukoya, CEO of Gidicartel; an online e-commerce platform, was able to secure a million-dollar investment from a New York-based investment firm, while Tolulope Oginni, CEO of Transfurd Limited, was featured in Forbes 30 under 30 in 2019. These are a few of the success stories that validate the necessity of the Business Fair.
He stated that this year’s edition will mark the eighth edition of the Connect Nigeria Business Fair and provides a roadmap for business owners, with the focus on panel sessions, pitch sessions, master classes, exhibition, networking and lots more.
The fair is backed by some corporate bodies, including Aiteo, Allianz Insurance, Union Bank, Sigma Pensions, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Airtel and NIRSAL.
JOSHUA BASSEY
