By Dipo Olowookere
On Tuesday, April 26, 2022, the Governors of Borno, Lagos and Akwa-Ibom States, Mr Babagana Zulum, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Mr Udom Emmanuel respectively will be honoured by The Industry Newspapers.
The trio, along with other eminent Nigerians, would be recognised for their selfless services to the nation at The Industry Summit/Awards scheduled to take place at the Banquet Hall of Sheraton Hotel and Tower, Ikeja, Lagos.
A statement from the organisers of the event formerly known as The Industry Evening Summit disclosed that the programme will start with a summit by 10 am and a dinner/awards ceremony by 6 pm.
Governor Zulum was chosen as The Industry Governor of the Year- Overall, while Governor Sanwo-Olu was picked as The Industry Governor of the Year for Job Creation, with Governor Emmanuel selected as The Industry Governor of the Year for Infrastructure.
Also, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele emerged as the Regulatory Officer of the Year; the Chairman of Troyka Holdings, Dr Biodun Shobanjo, is the Doyen of Advertising in Africa, while the Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity Bank Plc, Mrs Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, is the Banker of the Year.
In the statement signed by the convener of the event and Editor-in-chief of The Industry Newspapers, Mr Goddie Ofose, it was explained that the awardees were chosen after painstakingly reviewing their impacts on their fields.
He stated that the team of assessors led by the Leadership Newspaper, South West General Manager, Mr Chima Akwaja, did a good job at arriving at the list.
Mr Ofose stated that at the ceremony themed Financial inclusion, digital payment and the challenges of banking the unbanked, leaders of thoughts in the Nigerian business landscape would rev up conversations that would deepen financial inclusion and proffer solutions to the challenges of banking the unbanked.
According to him, Nigerians who have access to financial services are reported as having a lack of basic resources and the financial knowledge necessary to carry out transactions, stressing that a lack of education around financial services has likely contributed to low financial inclusion.
“In a quest to extend financial services to the unbanked, particularly those in remote and rural regions, it is critical that we engender conversation about the viability of agents. Agents are retail storefront operators representing financial services providers with the delivery of financial services.
“According to EFinA’s 2018 Access to Finance Survey, financial exclusion is highest in rural areas. This is because the traditional model of delivering financial services — the bank branch — is not sustainable in these areas,” he stated.
The prolific journalist stated that the keynote speaker for this year’s event is Mr Emefiele, while the CEO of Financial Institution Training Centre (FITC), Mrs Chizor Malize will deliver a lead paper.
The year panel comprises Chioma Afe, Group Head, Retail Marketing & Analytic, Access Bank Plc; Cherry Eromosele, Group Chief Marketing & Corporate Communications Officer, Interswitch Nigeria; Chuma Ezirim, Group Executive, e-Business & Retail Products, First Bank; Mr Kenny Joda, CEO, FibreOne; Mrs Bola Atta, Group Director for Communication, UBA Plc; David Okeme, Divisional Head Payment Solutions & Vertical Market Systemspecs; Olugbenga Agboola, CEO Flutterwave; Mr Oti Ukubeyinje, Senior Vice President, Products and Product Marketing, Terragon; and Babs Ogundeyi, CEO Kuda Microfinance Bank, while the moderator is Mr Mojeed Jamiu, the publisher of Upshot Reports.
