Photos From the Grand Opening Of "Nigeria's First 5-Star Hotel" In Lagos

The latest hotel in town, InterContinental Lagos, was launched last Sunday 29th September 2013 at Victoria Island, Lagos. The hotel, owned by the Milan Group had its grand opening done by His Excellency, Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN), Governor of Lagos State and saw celebrities, political persons and much more grace the event. The Governor in his speech commended the promoters of the event for their vision regarding the hotel as a welcome development at a time Nigeria is looking for foreign investments to grow its economy. Speaking on behalf of the owners of InterContinental Lagos, the Chairman of Milan Group, Ramesh Valechha, disclosed that the newly opened first luxury five-star hotel in the history of Nigeria has created 650 direct employments and scores of indirect employment in the hotel value chain. The grand opening event was attended by eminent persons among whom were Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi; his predecessor, Chief Joseph Sanusi; Lagos State Commissioners for Commerce and Industry, Sola Oworu; Kayode Opeifa (Transport); Engr. Taofiq Tijani (Energy and Mineral Resources); Group Managing Director of Milan Group, Rajesh Valechha; Executive Director, Milan Group, Vikram Valechha; General Manager, InterContinental Lagos, Didier Coeln; Regional General Manager Africa, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG); Maher Nasr and Regional Director, IHG; Karl Hala, Ali Baba, Omawumi, Yemi Sax and others.

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Cable Car, Train Service Ready Soon —Fashola

The long awaited cable car project is on the verge of completion, says Governor Babatunde Fashola, but he did not give a date for the completion of the project.
Fashola, who spoke at the World Habitat Day held at the Adeyemi Bero Audirorium, Alausa in Ikeja, Lagos, southwest Nigeria on Monday, said residents of the state would  begin to enjoy cable car and light rail transportation within the metropolis as the projects would be completed soon.
The governor stated that cable car, which is part of the Apapa model city plan, would transit between Apapa and Falomo, via Lagos Island, while describing the innovation as vital to achieving the mega city status.
He said his administration was committed to activating every means of transportation in the state in order to reduce the number of vehicles on the road, which cause unheal thy carbon emissions.

•Cable cars: ready 2015

Fashola, who was represented by the Commissioner for Transportation, Kayode Opeifa, pledged that his administration would continue to formulate policies to improve transportation and mass movement of people, stressing that the theme of the celebration, which is Urban Mobility, was a key factor in the development of the state to a model mega city.
The governor stated that the light rail project would be commissioned before the end of next year as it was estimated that 1.6 million Lagosians would be transported daily, which translates to 19.2 million passengers annually.
“By the end of 2014, The Blue Line should transport Lagosians from Mile 2 to Marina, a journey of about 13.5 kilometres, in the shortest possible time. We are also proud to say that the cable car; a veritable means of fast and unhindered transportation, is on the verge of completion.
“To grow the economy of our dear city of Lagos into one of the model Mega Cities in Africa, embracing the best practices in the transportation/urban mobility cannot be overlooked. Lagosians must accept this concept of transportation as safer and more economical.  We must recognise that individual transportation translates to more vehicles on the roads, which translate to an unhealthy volume of carbon emissions.
“Hence, our drive to provide a combination of transportation that would include road, rail and water ways. The challenges, however, are formulating more innovative changes aimed at ensuring the sustainability of these policies.”
The governor pointed out that in the last 14 years, priority attention had been paid to the improvement of urban mobility through the development of roads, water ways and rail lines, while identifying inadequate public transportation and parking spaces, as well as congestion as contemporary challenges.
Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Olutoyin Ayinde said the theme of the event was not determined by the United Nations, saying that the state government was leaving nothing to chance to implement the intermodal transportation.
According to him, “our water transportation now moves about two million people daily. The cable car will take off from Apapa and link to Falomo via Lagos Island. The feasibility study is on and tests are being conducted. Soon, Lagosians would experience another transportation experience.
“The Blue line and the Red line rail projects are ongoing and will soon be completed. Lagos State is the third in the African continent to achieve urban mobility. It is gratifying to note that the state has dedicated 50 percent of the state budget to capital expenditure only, thus allowing for the provision of transport infrastructure in the state as well upgrading and expansion of the existing roads.”
Speaking on urban migration and security, the Chairman, Lagos State Security Trust Fund, Mr Fola Arthur-Worrey said it was imperative for government to redefine public spaces in its urban centres for the benefits of citizens.
Arthur-Worrey, who noted that Lagos remained a preferred destination because of its economic status and the accommodating nature of indigenes, noted that more funding from the federal purse would go a long way in solving some of the state’s environmental challenges.

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How Africa’s Richest Woman Folorunsho Alakija Grew From $3.3Bn To $7.3Bn

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VENTURES AFRICA – In November last year when Ventures Africa published a story outing Nigerian fashion designer and oil magnate Folorunsho Alakija as the richest black woman in the world, we pegged her net worth at $3.3 billion and explained the rationale for our valuation in detail. See the full story here.
But in our inaugural ranking of Africa’s richest people, which we published on Monday, we place Alakija as the fourth richest person in Africa with a fortune we estimate at $7.3 billion.
Here’s our rationale: In March this year, Petrobas, a Brazilian oil company that owns an 8 percent working interest in OML 127 in which Alakija owns 60 percent, announced that it was actively looking to dispose of its stake for a figure in the region of $1.5 – $2.5 billion. According to sources at Petrobas, there are a number of interested suitors for the stake. The Reuters report is available here.
Since we prefer to be as conservative as possible, we take the low-end and assume that they will fetch $1billion for the stake. If their 8 percent fetches them $1 billion, then Alakija’s 60 percent is worth over $7.3 billion. Alakija also owns a Bombardier Jet as well as a large collection of prime real estate in Nigeria and London.
Alakija was born into a wealthy, polygamous Nigerian family. She started out her professional career in the mid 70s as a secretary at the International Merchant Bank of Nigeria and in the early 80s, she quit her job and went on to study Fashion design in England. She returned to Nigeria shortly afterwards to start Supreme Stitches, a premium Nigerian fashion label that catered exclusively to upscale clientele, including Maryam Babangida, the wife of Nigeria’s former military President Ibrahim Babangida. Leveraging on this proximity to power, she acquired an oil prospecting license – the basis of her enormous fortune today.

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