INDEPENDENT NIGERIA, CALIFORNIA AND LESSONS FOR LAGOS

 

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I wrote this ad as a part of an ongoing personal copywriting project I titled #366daysofcopy. This work for Durex is for Day 241 and it bears an intersectional nationalistic message for my country, Nigeria's 57th Independence Day anniversary. 

In the course of days, I'll share more about this project series of mine. 

But today, it's all about Nigeria! She is 57! And that is a pleasurable moment of truth, considering that our civil existence as a state has evolved through thick and thin, defying tremours, to be the Nigeria I can lay a compass of thoughts to today. 

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As a young Nigerian who, in all fairness to the truth of being Nigerian, must confess that he hasn't visited more than 4 states out of 36, I hold Lagos to be my closest ready definition of the country. I was born and bred in Lagos and this city of water remains the most familiar existential representation of Nigeria in the finite regions of my mind. 

Unarguably, Lagos generates the highest IGR among other Nigerian states. A monthly average of 20 billion naira put it atop of others with over 813 billion on 2017 budgets, a vast majority plough on capital projects. 

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The question is: is Lagos living up to her potentials ?   

The narrative of Lagos being the 5th largest economy in Africa if it were a country has always been repeated to the disturbing hearing of the people. Why can't we learn from California ?   

California's Example:  

Like Lagos, California is a case in point of what miracle one can create with human capital and conducive business and political environment. If it's a country, California will be the 6th largest economy in the world, with countries like Italy, Mexico trailing behind. What made all the difference?   

Technology:

The birth place of Silicon valley where the world largest IT firms are located from Facebook to Apple etc. These are fortune 500 companies whose turnovers are more than Nigeria's yearly budgets. Forget oil!

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Lesson for Lagos: 

Yes, in the heartbeat of Lagos Mainland somewhere around Yaba is the Andela IT hub and other blue-chip firms. The state government can help create critical infrastructure such as access roads, 24/7 electricity, free WiFi for such smart communities. An IT Trust fund in partnership with IT savvy venture capitalists to fund innovative ideas in return for share holding. You can imagine growing an IT company worth 100 billion dollars with Lagos and other partners owning 40% in share holding. Certainly, oil money will be as good as toilet paper. 

Entertainment:    

America's movie industry alone generates 504 billion dollars yearly, with 70% of those funds coming in from California the home of Hollywood itself. 

Lesson for Lagos:  

With a population of nearly 25 million people who are largely young people. Home to the third largest movie industry in the world "Nollywood" not to mention our music industry as well, the biggest single music market in Africa. 

We can tap into this creative industry by building amazing landmarks (at least the Ikoyi Link Bridge is fast becoming one of the most photographed landmarks in West Africa).

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Clearing our beaches of debris. From Ilashe to 7up there are amazing isolated islands along the Ojo-Badagry corridor. Sanitizing and making security top notch around Lagos creeks .Including tax rebate, these are incentives to make great musical videos and shoot movie scenes at home, rather than pouring capital flight to South Africa, London, Paris et by our artistes. 

On Education:

If Stanford University can produce billionaires in dollars placing California on global IT map from Google to Tesla. UNILAG, LASU and LASPOTECH et al  ... What are they all doing ?  

On Agriculture:  

Why do we have to go all the way to Kebbi State to produce Lake rice factoring transportation and other logistics. When Igbinmo rice of Ekiti has some of the best fibres in the world and closer to Lagos in proximity than Kebbi.  

Rather than depend and shout ourselves hoarse on the strength of paucity Federal allocation or restructuring.   

Lagos can build on certain leverages while carving a niche for itself as a major IT, Tourism, Business etc hub in Africa.

Now, I do not, by the focus of this piece, undermine the importance and status of other states in the country. I only believe that if each state taps into its core and figures out its strengths to make an enterprise of them, then Nigeria shall be great again, one state at a time.

Happy Independence!