Arcadia, BusinessDay to host Africa-focused SME summit in Lagos

Arcadia, in partnership with BusinessDay Media, will host the third edition of its Africa-focused business forum in Lagos next month, as conversations around scaling small businesses and attracting investment gain traction across the continent.

The event, scheduled for May 22 at Victoria Island, will centre on the theme “Transforming Africa’s Business Landscape,” with a focus on strengthening small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which account for the bulk of employment in many African economies but often struggle with informality and limited access to capital.

The forum will convene entrepreneurs, investors and policy stakeholders to examine how African businesses can transition from informal operations to more structured, investment-ready models, according to the organisers.

Speakers include Titilayo Oshodi, special adviser to the Lagos State governor on climate change and circular economy, and Foluso Phillips, founder of Philips Consulting. Their participation underscores the event’s emphasis on sustainability and corporate governance as key pillars of business growth.

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The programme will feature keynote addresses and panel discussions aimed at addressing structural constraints facing SMEs, including access to finance, regulatory bottlenecks and scaling challenges in fragmented markets.

“Transformation in Africa’s business landscape requires structure, systems and collaboration,” said Akintunde Marinho, founder of Africa Day Company and Arcadia TV Africa. “We are bringing together entrepreneurs, ecosystem partners, financial institutions and investors to explore how partnerships and structured planning can drive real growth.”

Launched in 2024, Arcadia Africa Day has evolved into a platform for cross-sector dialogue spanning business, culture and the creative economy, reflecting a broader push to position Africa’s private sector as a driver of economic development.

The event will conclude with a cultural showcase, highlighting African music and arts, as organisers seek to blend business dialogue with creative expression.

Wasiu Alli

Wasiu Alli is a business, economics cum data journalist with strong expertise covering macro trends, capital markets, government policies, corporate earnings and comparative economics analysis. Alli turns raw data into trends that not only tells compelling stories but nudges investors to make valued and informed decisions. He’s an alumnus of Lagos State University and trained at Lagos Business School. He formerly heads the Companies and Markets desk at BusinessDay where he writes and supervises the production of well researched articles on earnings updates, corporate sectoral comparisons, market intelligence as well as interviews with C-suite executives.