Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu flanked by the Executive Vice President of Dubai World Trade Centre and CEO, Kaoun International Dubai, Trixie LohMirmand (left); Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Science and Technology, Engr (Mrs) Ibilola Kasunmu (right) and others, during a courtesy visit to the Governor by management of Dubai World Trade Centre, at the Lagos House, Marina, on Wednesday, 19 July 2023
Sanwo-Olu discusses technology exchange, investment with Dubai-based exhibitors
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Wednesday, received the management of Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) and KAOUN International Dubai led by Ms. Trixie Loh Yi Shan LohMirmand on a courtesy visit at the Lagos House, Marina.
The meeting was a follow-up on a proposed partnership on technology exchange being developed by the Lagos State Government and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based international exhibition firms.
Last June, Governor Sanwo-Olu attended the Gulf Information Technology Exchange (GITEX) – Africa’s largest technology conference held in Morocco – which was organised by DWTC and KAOUN International Dubai. Before a global audience, the Governor shared the story of Lagos’ technological advancement, while reassuring investors of the State’s willingness to pursue Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the local technology ecosystem.
Sanwo-Olu said Lagos remained an important technology hub in Africa, noting that the State was ready to work with the firms to host global technology exhibition. This, he said, would raise the growth potential for start-ups and entrepreneurs operating in the local technology ecosystem.
The Governor said: “Lagos is an important economic destination in Africa, which is why we are excited to see all the conversations, which started over a year ago, being put together. I appreciate the team work. We are beginning to build something that will be global and something that will be interesting to our continent and the world. We are excited about where the conversation DWTC and its partner is leading to. We are hoping that, in the next couple of months, we could make a few big announcements. We could set on a trajectory where both Lagos State and your organisations can indeed help those in tech eco-space.
“Lagos has the biggest tech ecosystem in Africa and the State is home to entertainment, fashion, and music. We can infuse all of these into new technology to leapfrog discoveries in new music, fashion and everything the world wants to see. We have excellent team that will be in position to help realise these objectives with your organisations. We will do everything to ensure that Lagos is on global map where it can recreate modern technology with new techniques and discoveries to drive entertainment and music. In the collaboration, we also want to leverage technology to improve the Ease of Doing Business index.”
LohMirmand said her visit to Lagos was to further to explore areas of mutual collaboration in technology and broker partnership with the Lagos Government. She said the DWTC team and its partner would be willing to get involved in Lagos’ digital transformation vision, as well as other areas of collaboration in technology.
LohMirmand said: “This is my first visit to Nigeria and this is coming on the background of a very interesting conversation with the Lagos State Government to discuss the great markets that we have. We are looking forward to exciting opportunities that we can build with the State of Lagos and the new administration in Nigeria. We are ready for collaboration, so that we can support and contribute to Nigeria’s digital transformation roadmap.”
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