Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, received Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Hon. Gaston Alfonso Browne, on a courtesy visit, saying that his administration would partner with his country in entertainment, arts, culture, and technology.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, during the courtesy visit at the Lagos House, Marina, attended by Lagos First Lady Dr. Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu and some members of the Lagos State Executive Council, while giving the pledge, declared that both Lagos and the Caribbean acknowledged as the sixth region in Africa were and, therefore, “can partner in the areas of culture, tourism, arts, and entertainment because we have a lot of things in common.”
“We can quickly begin to ship between the two regions all of the things that are common to us.
“Our tourism potential, arts and culture, and the kind of music we listen to can infuse into our economy very quickly, and we will begin to see the benefits among us and the two regions.
“Technology is very important because it knows no boundaries. We say we are the tech hub of Africa. All of the unicorns in tech start-ups have their origins in Lagos. So, technology can also be the strong handshake that we require,” Sanwo-Olu said.
“The time is now, and we all need to seize the opportunity. Mr. President has laid the background for us. He has said that he wants Nigeria to have a one trillion GDP within the next couple of years, and that is the kind of thing we are saying.
“Nigeria cannot just sit back and be a developing country. We have to take that narrative up. If China and India can do it, Nigeria can do it. We need to take charge and let the world know that indeed we are our brothers’ keepers, and distance should not be a hindrance,” he added.
Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Hon. Browne, accompanied by his wife, Maria Browne; Ambassador Davin Joseph; Chairman/CEO of Air Peace Limited, Dr. Allen Onyema; Nigerian Ex-International and Air Peace Ambassador, Chief Segun Odegbami and CEO of LIAT 2020 Airlines Antigua, Mrs. Hafsah Abdulsalam, said his country was ready to partner with Lagos State and Nigeria in general in trade and investments.
Browne said the key objective of his country was to strengthen the relationship between Antigua and Barbuda and Nigeria, as well as the Caribbean and the rest of Africa, expressing the belief that Africa had a significant amount of resources, enough to make every African country literally become a developed country and all countries in the continent “do even better than the Republic of China.”
“I believe Africa has a significant amount of resources, and literally every African country can become a developed country. I am of the view that African countries can do even better than the Republic of China.
“Our aspiration for Nigeria is to see Nigeria become a developed country within the next decade or two. And we want to make sure that we are an early mover in the Caribbean to establish close linkages with Nigeria to increase trade and investment. The Caribbean and Africa must unite and work together to bring prosperity to our people,” Browne charged.
Also speaking, Chairman/CEO, Air Peace Limited, Onyema, commended Governor Sanwo-Olu for receiving Prime Minister Browne and his entourage, that Antigua and Barbuda’s first citizen was in Lagos to address Nigerian investors, from which Lagos would benefit a lot.
Onyema noted that there was a second scramble going on for Africa, declaring that the continent was the next destination for the entire world.
“The West, Asians, and everybody else want a piece of Africa. We must have Africa for ourselves and accommodate others,” the Air Peace boss said.
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