The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) and the Lagos State government have reaffirmed their commitment to fostering a conducive environment for businesses in Lagos and Nigeria to grow and thrive.

The commitments were expressed at the State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER) Technical Session and Statewide Town Hall Meeting organised by PEBEC in Lagos at the Combo Hall, Agidingbi Ikeja.

Speaking at the event, Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs. Folashade Bada-Ambrose, described Lagos as a state that understands the need to institutionalise reforms and recognises that prosperity cannot be built on potential alone.

Ambrose affirmed that Lagos has embraced the SABER framework as a transformative vehicle for governance reform, private sector engagement, and economic inclusion.

“Reforms must be constructed upon policy clarity, infrastructure readiness, regulatory transparency, and above all, unwavering public-private cooperation. SABER, spearheaded by PEBEC in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Finance, the Debt Management Office, and the World Bank, offers a strategic framework to standardise and localise ease-of-doing-business reforms across all subnational governments because reform must be context-sensitive. It must reach the woman selling textiles in Balogun, the baker in Ikorodu navigating multiple levies, the startup founder in Yaba building blockchain-based health solutions, the farmer in Epe exporting processed palm oil, and the young cooperative society in Ijede seeking access to patient capital,” she said.

According to the commissioner, Lagos’ response to SABER has been robust, ambitious, and fully aligned with the State’s long-term strategic plans such as the ongoing development of Lagos State Industrial Policy (LSIP 2025–2030), the T.H.E.M.E.S+ Development Agenda of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration, and the Lagos State Development Plan (LSDP) 2052.

The commissioner also announced that the Lagos State Export Readiness Programme, a six-week training for MSME, will kick off on 2nd July, 2025, in partnership with Afrexim Bank, while the Lagos Corporate Assembly, tagged BOS Meets With Lagos Business Community, will also hold in July.

Director General, PEBEC, Princess Zahrah Mustapha Audu, expressed that the state’s policies affect businesses and partnership between the states and PEBEC would enable government and stakeholders to adapt, enhance and strengthen the regulatory environment, particularly through the SABER programme.

She said, “The goal of PEBEC is to work with the states and ensure all hands are on deck to support the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to foster a conducive business environment that drives more innovation and growth. The overriding goal is trade facilitation, and the Federal Government is doing a lot, like reducing customs inspection of goods to one day and addressing multiple taxation, levies and fees, among others.

“At the Federal level, PEBEC is pushing for synergy and sharing of reports among agencies to avoid multiplicity of inspection, and I believe that this session will lay all the issues bare and speak to challenges as they concern the operating environment in Lagos State.”

Audu commended Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for his present and strategic approach to driving investments and for being a true face of the state through his deliberate governance approach. She also applauded Mrs. Folashade Bada Ambrose for her energetic drive for reforms in the state.

The town hall meeting featured a panel of discussions, with robust sessions held on how to drive deeper engagement and collaboration towards an improved business environment.