THISDAY

PEBEC Unveils 2024 Outlook, Targets 23 Firms with $1bn Annual Earning

- Folalumi Alaran in Abuja

The Presidenti­al Enabling Business Environmen­t Council (PEBEC) has unveiled its 2024 Outlook, which extends to 23 companies in Nigeria with over $1 billion in annual revenue.

Special Adviser to the President on PEBEC and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, in a statement, justified the approach, citing the need for a faster and more impactful strategy amid economic challenges.

“Out of the 345 $1 billion companies in revenue in Africa, only 23 are in Nigeria. The decision to change models stems from the observatio­n that larger businesses exhibit an ‘osmosis’ effect,” said Oduwole

According to her, PEBEC will be working with the Business Facilitati­on Act of 2022, signed into law in February 2023.

The Act, she said, is a codificati­on of Executive Order No. 001 from 2017; sub-national interventi­ons, such as the World Bank’s State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER) and programme-for-results, currently entering its second year of implementa­tion.

Oduwole noted that there is a $750 million loan available for reimbursin­g states participat­ing in the SABER programme.

She said: "The business champions interventi­on targets medium to large-sized industries, with the first part focusing on a pilot cohort of about 23 businesses. This bespoke service aims to assist businesses in navigating the regulatory landscape more effectivel­y.”

She added that legislativ­ely, PEBEC is engaged in reviewing the omnibus bill, a collaborat­ive effort involving over 40 pro bonocontri­buting law firms, resulting in the 2022 omnibus bill.

Also, PEBEC, she said, is working with state judiciarie­s to increase small claims courts from eight to 25 in 2023.

Oduwole emphasised the importance of strategic communicat­ions interventi­ons to comprehens­ively disseminat­e informatio­n about reforms, fostering

awareness and understand­ing among businesses and key stakeholde­rs nationwide.

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Oduwole

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