Edo State Government, through the Edo State Investment Promotion Office (ESIPO), and the private sector, convened a strategic planning session to set the Business Enabling Reforms Action Plan (BERAP) for 2025.
The event, which held at the Edo State One-Stop-Investment Centre, brought together representatives from government agencies, private sector organisations, and industry associations, among whom were the Benin Chamber of Commerce Industry Mines and Agriculture (BENCCIMA); Edo State Exporters Cluster; National Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI); LAPO Microfinance Bank; OPGAN; Edo State Footwear Practitioners; Edo State Cooperative Farmers Agency among others.
The session focused on identifying key areas for improvement in the state’s business environment, including security, electricity, job creation, infrastructure, market access, and communications.
Participants at the breakout sessions discussed the specific challenges and opportunities within each of the aforementioned areas.
Speaking at the event, Kelvin Uwaibi, Managing Director of ESIPO, stressed the importance of setting clear targets and timelines for the BERAP initiatives. He highlighted the need for improved communication channels between government and the private sector, as well as a more efficient and transparent regulatory framework.
According to him, the salient questions to ask include: “What is the target for job creation, for example, between the government and the private sector in the coming year? On electricity, what are the electricity requirements for businesses in Edo State at the moment? On communications, internally, we can communicate quickly as a government, but as a private sector, what are your channels of communication with the government, and what do you want to see?”
The participants enumerated several expectations of the BERAP plan for 2025 including, actionable plans to assist entrepreneurs in the state in the area of access to market; security; road accessibility, creation of business clusters and single facilities, updated data of businesses, product standardisation, tax harmonization among other things that will directly affect entrepreneurs positively in the state.
The Director General BENCCIMA said he expects that all MDAs and businesses present at the technical session will review previous plans and highlight where successes were achieved and look at areas where improvement is needed.
The team from the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB), Secretariat, ESIPO provided an overview of previous BERAP implementations, and the lessons learned. The importance of continuous improvement of the BERAP process and the need to adapt to changing circumstances were emphasised.
The BERAP session marks a significant step towards creating a more conducive business environment in Edo State. By working together, the government and the private sector aim to attract investment, stimulate economic growth, and improve the lives of Edo residents.
