Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, has said that the state has the highest number of technology start-ups in West Africa and is the leader in e-commerce.
Sanwo-Olu made this known during the inauguration of Mainone/MDXI Data Centre in Lekki, Lagos, last week.
Sanwo-Olu, alongside his deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, said his administration would continue to support and create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive in the state.
“Lagos is the heartbeat and commercial nerve centre of the country, therefore, we will continue to support investors and create an enabling environment for their businesses to flourish.
“Lagos remains in the tech global market and in the map of the global space as a destination of choice, where investors, tech experts see as a place to be.
“Therefore, for businesses to thrive and international and local businesses to do well, we need to deliberately listen to their needs, know how the government can help in terms of policies to make them thrive.
“This investment is putting Lagos on a global market and likewise providing jobs for the teeming youths,” he said.
The governor noted that with job creation, knowledge and skills would be acquired by those employed in the facility and they would be trained so that they could compete with their counterparts on a global level.
Also speaking, Funke Opeke, the Managing Director of Mainone, the parent company of MDXI, said the facility is a hub of digital economy in West Africa.
According to Opeke, MDXI landed its first marine cable in Lagos and opened its first data centre also in Lagos and West Africa.
“The facility will further help in boosting development, especially in areas of data gathering and content creation.
“All telecommunications companies are connected to the facility and major institutions are providing critical services all over West Africa with this facility.
“With Equinox becoming our parent company, we are poised to make a lot more investment with other global cities in terms of data and expertise,” she said
She disclosed that with the presence of the facility in Lagos and Abuja, the company would replicate and extend such to Port-Harcourt and other parts of the country.
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“Absolutely, When we came with the Buhari government in 2015 I became the minister. We were committed to a roadmap to establish a National Carrier, to concession the airports, to set up a leasing company, to establish cargo facilities and we have been doing that.”
On why the Buhari government wanted a national carrier, the minister responded: “Nigeria is situated at the centre of Africa, equidistant from all locations in Africa. 30.4 million square kilometres miles, 1.5 billion people, very green land. If Central and Eastern Africa is the belt of the continent, then Nigeria is the buckle. 200 million people and rising middle class, propensity to fly is high. Nigeria is a candidate for National Carrier.”
Sirika who insisted that the coming national carrier will be private sector driven added; “Private. Yes. 5 per cent government and no government stepping right in that company, no government control, no membership of government on board. Totally private and committed.
“Whatever we say we will do as a government since 2015, it has happened. that is why Tim Clark of Emirates, Qatar Airways and all of them are looking to go into Nigeria in multiple frequencies and multiple landing points because Nigeria is the right place for the airline business.
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