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Lagos Mega City, Highly Viable Commercial Venture - Expert

Apr 24, 2008 - Lagos as a Mega-City has been described as a highly viable commercial proposition for investors in infrastructure development with an advice that the Public Private Partnership framework should be used optimally.

Stating this on Thursday while delivering the keynote address at the plenary session on “Financing a Model Mega-City”, Mr. Nathan Mintah of South Africa’s Zephyr Africa Management Company noted that the role of government should be limited to creating a vision of the model mega city adapted to local condition and promoting an enabling environment to engage with the private sector in providing the services.

According to Mintah, tackling of challenges of infrastructure development should be envisioned by the Lagos state government from the perspective of a procurer of services rather than a provider.

Such purchase must be based on the best services and lowest cost selected from an array of service providers within the specified limits.

He also suggested that the limitation of space implies that the options of a complete ‘ Greenfield City ’ cannot be explored but the same can be achieved through the ‘Brownfield regeneration’.

According to him, such an effort involves the “regeneration of existing Lagos as well as the fostering of new satellite cities that are self sustaining from an infrastructure perspective to absorb some of the existing population”

While alluding to the success of such effort in cities like Dubai, the King Abdullahi Economic City, the Sixth October and Sadar Cities, Mintah said selecting a right model depends on the circumstances of each community.

Saying the Lagos Mega-City is a highly viable commercial proposition for investors in infrastructure development the speaker noted that the PPP framework is the optimal way to allocate risk between the state and the private sector.

He further advised the state government to seek international credit rating which will in turn affect its capacity to raise capital.

In his presentation the Special Adviser to the Governor on Taxation and Revenue Mr Ade Ipaye noted that the twin danger affecting the state revenue portfolio lies in the decline in revenue derivable from oil, attributable to the situation in the Niger Delta and the declining allocation from Federation Account due to international trade treaty obligations.

He said the state government had commenced a process of harnessing its tax revenue by granting autonomy to its revenue board and blocking all leakages through automation.

Ipaye also noted that the continued tax payer education and increased monitoring and enforcement of its laws will earn the needed revenue.

He also stated the resolve of the administration to impact on the whole process through good governance and transparency.