By Ugochukwu Onyi

The atmosphere was tense at the Golden Gate Restaurant, Ikoyi, Lagos, venue of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group, NESG, press briefing to herald the 15th Nigerian Economic Summit, NES, scheduled to be held in Abuja between December  15 and 17, 2009.  The look on the faces of the NESG officials, which comprised of Frank Nweke Jnr, the director-general of NESG, and Doyin Salami, chairman of NESG, left no one in doubt on the serious nature of the matter for discourse.  

Addressing journalists, Salami vowed that this year’s summit would be radically different and would not follow the pattern of the others that ended up being annual talking shops. “The summit is intended to be a careful reflection on the things that have hindered us as a nation,” he said.

The resolve to make the forthcoming summit remarkably different from those before it, Salami continued, stems from the knocks and pressures by the populace to justify its neglible implementation of the over 3,000 recommendations of the summit since inception, which have ultimately left them in no better standing. Responsible for this he noted, were the gaps that stood in the way of their successful implementation. As a way out, NES 15 he stated, will engage those who will positively affect the implementation of public policy at the summit.

Towards this end, and in a bid to add some element of seriousness to the summit, NES has received assurances from the president, Umaru Yar’Adua that he would personally participate in summit discussions, alongside the Vice President and other key government

However, defending NES, Nweke Jnr debunked insinuations that the summits had all along made no impact on the economy of the nation, citing conceptualisation of the public-private partnership, as one of the remarkable gains of the annual think tank. Continuing, Nweke Jr stated that the plight of the nation would have been worse, without the contribution of the summit.

The organisers also said areas in which NES 15 would be different from ones previously held include the introduction of a Patrons’ Dinner, aimed at celebrating the initiators of the annual summit and the introduction of an EXPO at the summit venue, that will serve as a veritable platform for showcasing and creating business opportunities for investors.

On the fate of Vision 2010 policy framework, the group disclosed that the vision has been overtaken by Vision 2010, and as a result was no longer attainable.

The summit over the years, despite criticism, has made significant contributions to the nation’s polity, especially in the area of economic development. The NES has been in the forefront of the drive to create an enabling environment conducive to good governance, responsible private sector investment and sustainable economic growth and development. In addition to these, the summit has achieved economic development liberalisation, improved economic climate, private sector reforms, anti-corruption and transparency.

Similarly, there have been policies implemented by government which can be attributed to the efforts of NES. In its bid to ensure a suitable investment climate for the growth of the economy, the summit has been instrumental in the repea