LAGOS – The Planning Committee for the 2015 Nigeria Maritime Expo (NIMAREX), said on Wednesday the event would focus on issues that would help regenerate the country’s economy.[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”10″]
Dr Omogbai Omo-Eboh, the Head of the Intellectual Group of the committee, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
Omo-Eboh said the Expo’s focus on regenerating Nigeria’s economy was designed to enable stakeholders in the maritime sector to take advantage of the opportunities in the industry to diversify the country’s source of income.
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“The theme we have selected is `Regenerating Economic Growth through the Maritime Sector`.
“We believe that we need to realign the Nigerian economy. The economy has, for too long, dependent largely on our oil revenues.
“Now, the price of crude oil is taking a nose dive in the international market and that has the consequence of affecting the government’s income stream, its revenue profile and its budget.
“Therefore, we are looking, and we believe the government is also looking at other sources of generating income and we think the maritime industry presents a very good opportunity for this.“
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Omo-Eboh, who is also the President of the Maritime Arbitrators of Nigeria, said the papers that would be presented at the Expo would highlight the need to diversify the nation’s economy.
According to him, policy makers, key economic players and maritime investors are expected to participate actively in discussions that will help strengthen the economy.
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“We are looking at principal actors on the economic landscape of Nigeria – those that formulate economic policies for the country – the Minister of Finance, who is the Head of the Economic Team.
“We are expecting the Governor of the Central Bank or his representative.
“We are looking at those industry stakeholders, who have already invested a lot in this industry and, who have the capacity to do more to grow the industry even further for the benefit of Nigerians.“
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