The newly elected president of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Leye Kupoluyi, has promised to build stronger coalitions across Africa, which align more significantly with the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) vision and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) protocols.
Giving his acceptance speech at the investiture luncheon held over the weekend in Lagos, Kupoluyi noted that the chamber had built a reputation as the leading voice of the Organised Private Sector (OPS) in Nigeria and promised to drive credible policy advocacy as well as engage more strategically with government at all levels to achieve this purpose.
He added that his mission was to continue to champion policies that promote enterprise, competitiveness and inclusive growth.
Kupoluyi noted that the theme for his presidency, ‘Building a Future of Inclusion, Excellence and Influence (built on the pillars of women and youth inclusion, staff empowerment and advocacy leadership),’ would refocus their attention and open a new phase for women and youth-led businesses.
He added that the chamber, as well as businesses, were facing rapid transformation in technology, trade pressures, regulation, a changing digital economy and global competitiveness, but assured that the chamber would remain influential and deliver future-ready advocacy to meet these pressures head-on.
“Women are at the heart of economic growth and we would do more to empower them in doing business in Nigeria through targeted support mechanisms.
“Similarly, the future of our economy rests on the shoulders of our youth. Therefore, the LCCI Young Business Leaders’ Group (YBLG) will be strengthened, and we will launch youth-focused enterprise accelerators, create structured engagement with startups, digital entrepreneurs and innovators and offer our innovation hub as a support facility to boost business productivity,” he said.
Chair, Board of Trustees (BoT) for the chamber, John Odeyemi, highlighted the fact that Kupoluyi was coming at a time when businesses were navigating inflationary pressures, fiscal policy reforms, global trade uncertainties and structural bottlenecks.
He expressed confidence in the new president’s ability to champion the business community courageously and charged him to deepen the chamber’s intellectual leadership through research-driven advocacy and forward-looking thought leadership, as well as strengthen youth and women’s participation in the chamber.
He further urged him to modernise the chamber’s operations, engagements and service offerings as well as preserve and uphold its dignity and unity.
