Key players from the government, the diplomatic community, civil society, and the public and private sectors have discussed new approach towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
They gathered in Lagos for the two-day Africa Social Impact Summit (ASIS), co-convened by Sterling One Foundation and the United Nations in Lagos.
The gathering, which was held under the theme, ‘Global Vision, Local Action: Repositioning the African Development Ecosystem for Sustainable Outcomes,’ was the second edition of the Africa Social Impact Summit designed to help build partnerships and galvanise investments that will ensure that Africa makes rapid progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs).
The CEO of the Sterling One Foundation, Mrs Olapeju Ibekwe expressed hope for several partnerships and innovations to emerge from the summit, stating that, “we are looking forward to existing social impact initiatives in various rural communities accessing multilevel resources to be able to do more and spread their impact from community to community across the continent.”
She added that, “across the continent, the people are waiting for action. For far too long, Africa has been tagged – the Emerging Continent, with the continent’s potential a recurring theme of conversation, yet poverty, hunger, climate crisis, and inequality, remain visible; thus, Africa is yearning for action.”
The managing director and CEO of Sterling Bank Limited and board member of Sterling One Foundation, Mr Abubakar Suleiman, explained that, the true essence of the Summit was to ensure that, at every level, the issues and challenges resulting in widespread poverty across Africa get tackled rightly and that everyone is moving in the right direction.
The diplomatic community, UN Resident and Humanitarian coordinator, Nigeria, Mr Matthias Schmale, described the summit’s timing as an opportune happenstance during a time of enormous challenges and great opportunities for Africa.
According to him, the 2030 Agenda is a clear framework for addressing these challenges facing Africa, which requires all of us to break free from business-as-usual approaches and move together faster.
The host government, represented by the Lagos State deputy governor, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, asked the private sector to take the lead in unleashing enterprise-driven innovation to create the impact ecosystem required for recovery within the state and across Africa.
The permanent secretary of the Nigerian Ministry of Education, Mr David Adejo, stressed that, “the government cannot solely run the education sector and endorses private sector and academia partnerships to significantly restructure the curriculum and determine the kind of graduates we want.”
Former president of Malawi, urged the private sector in the global north to forge strong partnerships with the private sector in the global south to directly impact people within African communities.
Remarks from the US Consul General, Mr Will Stevens, the German Consul General, Mr Weert Börner, the Danish Consul General and Head of Trade, Mrs Jette Bjerrum, and a representative of the British High commission, all highlighted the potential that Africa holds, especially with its human resources and the different ways each of these countries is supporting to harness these resources.
Beyond the panels and keynote addresses, the Summit featured a deal room with pitches from 18 businesses shortlisted from over 500 applications from across Africa. The finalists from South Africa, Kenya, and Nigeria with health, waste recycling, agriculture, and education businesses had a combined investment bid of about $49.600 million for expansion and production capacity increase. Successful candidates will access the requested funds to scale their businesses.
