Lagos – mr Micheal Olawale-Cole, the Chairman, Trade Promotion Board, Lagos State Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), on Monday, said the chamber spent over N200 million to organise the ongoing trade fair.
Olawale-Cole told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the Chamber expended the huge sum to assist the Federal Government in laying emphasis on diversification of the economy.
He said that the chamber ensured that security, sanitation, electricity, water and hospitality, among others, were put in right shape at the fair ground.
“In order words, we ensured sustainable environment for the exhibitors to boost diversification of economy.
“As you can see, most companies on this ground are not into oil and gas.[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”70560″]
“They are agriculturist, artisans, manufacturers, fashion designers, builders, micro finance banks and trado-medicals, among others.
“The only oil and gas company here is Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).”
Olawale-Cole said that another reason for expending so much on the fair was to make Nigeria a destination for foreign investors.
He said that 14 countries were already on the trade fair ground to showcase their products and “we are still expecting more countries to fly in”.
“Countries like Japan, Korea, China, Cote’devoire, Ghana, Republic of Benin, South Korea, and Indonesia,among others, are here,“ he said.
The chamber official said that that trade fair had become a focus of the whole world.
He said the number of exhibitors grew from 2000 in 2014 to 6000 in 2015, a 200 per cent growth within a year.
He, however, advised Nigerian government to construct exhibition centres in major cities in the country to accommodate incoming expansion. (NAN)
