Mrs. Ogomudia, (right) vice chairperson planning committee of the conference, Mr. Sheni Adio (SAN), chairman NBA/SBL, Dr. Adeoye Adefulu, chairman, planning committee and Mrs. Fola Akande, council member, at the press conference…. last weekend.
By Ibeawuchi Ambs Uwaleke
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Section on Business Law (SBL), will on June 26 to 28 hold its annual business conference at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
This edition, the 13th in the series, will be anchored on the theme: “Growth, Investment and Employment beyond Rhetoric”, which is to examine the economic growth of Nigeria, volume of investment inflow and employment opportunities as they are, without any ambiguities.
At one of the sessions during the conference, a topic titled: “Building investor confidence in the administration of justice”, will be examining how the rule of law and press freedom can form essential ingredients for promoting both local and foreign investments in Nigeria.
No doubt, a country’s good legal system that ensures rule of law and indeed press freedom will guarantee investor confidence and promote the ease of doing business as well as protect investments.
This hint was dropped at a press conference in Lagos last weekend by council members of SBL while responding to a question asked by one of the journalists as to whether investors’ confidence could be built only in the administration of justice without press freedom.
The question appeared to be a veiled reference to last Thursday’s suspension of operating licenses of Ray Power FM and African Independent Television (AIT), the media outfits under the Daar Communications PLC.
Responding to the poser on press freedom in relation to investors’ confidence in the country’s economy, Adeoye Adefulu, the chairman, planning committee of the 13th Business Annual Law Conference, said: “Press freedom will be part of the questions to be addressed there (at the conference.
Participants at this conference, according to the organising committee, are drawn across the globe and they will be discussing about Nigeria’s myriads of challenges in the economy, education, healthcare and the daunting problem of insecurity in the country.
Other issues the conference will examine include: The bullying and sexual harassment at the work places, the oil and gas industry and its contribution to Nigeria’s GDP, role of the private sector in fixing the economy, agencies’ regulations and need for providing enabling environment for businesses to thrive, the future of law and lawyers, and the issue of wages for young practicing lawyers.
The conference will also discuss why Nigeria should develop a policy framework that will allow for more value flow in oil and gas sector, particularly the the value chain in the gas sub-sector.
