By Yinka Ajayi

Driven by the need for the new administration to speedily diversify Nigeria economy due to the fall in oil price and the acquisition of $60 billion debt by the last administration, Mr. Joseph Ebata, President of Bervidson Group, and convener of the retails leaders conference in this interview, stresses the need for the government to explore the retail sector which he opined has the capacity to improve the nation’s GDP, employment and income rather than a total dependence on oil.

How do you describe the effects the new administration will have on how we do business in Nigeria?
I told some of my colleagues before the elections, that whoever wins, Nigeria will be better for it. My reason being that, politicians are presently aware that Nigerians can no longer be taken for granted. Going by the intensity of their campaigns, they know that power truly resides with the people. Now that Buhari  has been sworn in, make no mistake, he knows very well that Nigerians are watching and will mobilise to vote him out in four years time, if he does not perform. This is the beauty of democracy playing out in Nigeria.

Secondly, for the economy to fare better, there are few areas he should pay particular attention to; the first is power. If he can solve the power challenge, that will be his legacy. The implications of resolving the electricity challenge in Nigeria are huge, for example we know that the cost of power supply forms a significant portion of doing business in Nigeria, once resolved, a huge portion of this cost translates into investable funds immediately. With more companies able to operate at improved capacity, employment will improve, and by implication people spending power will improve and the effects goes on.

The monster called corruption, if he deals with that like he promised, set himself as example, and get members of his own household (APC) and others to follow, without doubt, Nigeria will be a better country. 

The fall of oil price has had effects which has caused the non-payment of workers’ salaries in some States, and the inherited debt of $60billion by the outgoing administration. What measures can be taken to resolve this challenges?

I will be surprised if our government did not see the fall in oils prices coming. Over the years, key oil consuming nations in the world have been researching alternatives to oil. It was obvious that the variables that gave rise to the high oil prices were not sustainable over the long run. So it was inevitable that we are going to come to this point. The way out is diversification of the economy. We need to develop other sectors of the economy like retail, agriculture, non-oil extractive sector and then we would have built the required shocks into the system that can withstand the impact of fluctuations in oil prices on our economy.

So, it was good to hear the finance minister, Dr.Ngosi Okonjo-Iweala, say that other sectors like Agriculture, Nollywood contribute substantial part of the Nation’s GDP beside Oil. If the nation can continue on the path of diversification of the economy, develop critical sectors that can equally contribute significantly to GDP, then I’ll say that the fall in oil price is a blessing in disguise. I firmly believe the situation will force Buhari’s administration to think more of ways to generate revenue and improve the economy.
The States also needs to be empowered the more, the Centre should transfer more power to the states but demand performance. The States’ dependence on the Centre for funds should be reduced.

How do you mean?
When the state know that they don’t have to depend on the Federal government for funds they are depending today, then they will be forced to think of better ways to generate funds to execute the programs they promised. There are lots of opportunities, all we need are thinkers. For instance, Lagos State did well driving internally generated revenue. Kwara State, is talking of agriculture, Calabar is talking of tourism. There are states all over the country blessed with fertile lands, why can’t they talk of agriculture? So states should come up with something that can generate revenue for them.

Amid the challenge of internally generated revenue, how would the retail market bailout the economic downturn?
Retail is the future of every economy, and Nigeria is no exception. In most other climes of the world, Retailing contributes more to the growth of the economy in term of GDP, employment and income. In Nigeria, it is transforming, and the success will depend on a few factors – the right structure, leadership, technology, a supportive financial sector, the right political environment, government policies, international competition and lots more. Despite the various challenges, Nigeria remains very attractive for international retail investment. For instance FT.com Report on Investing in Nigeria, 2013, ATKeaarney African Retail Development Index (ARDI), 2014. The ARDI ranks Nigeria 2nd among the top 10 retail investment destinations in Africa. The reason is not far-fetched. Nigeria is one of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world, the biggest economy in Africa, the largest population, rising middle class and most of all, a maturing democracy. Thanks to the recent smooth transition where a sitting President conceded defeat to the opposition. With these, there are high hopes for retail survival in Nigeria.
Moreover, it has the capacity to put more money in the hands of the people, generate employment and without doubt, have the capacity to positively impact on the lives of the average Nigerian. With many retail international chains already coming into Nigeria, if President Buhari’s administration drives a policy that further encourages international retail chains, improves infrastructures (electricity for instance), then retail will grow, employment will improve and that would mean more income to the average man.

The maiden edition of retail conference, saw the gathering of leaders from all sectors, from the telecommunication giants to many others. What does this edition hold for participants?

We convoked the Retail Leaders Conference, specifically to ruminate on the current retail transformation in Nigeria, in part to draw attention to the changes that are taking place in the retail space in Nigeria; and to forge a collaborative approach to its development and aspire for a brighter future.

Due to the austerity measures that have eaten deep into our economic fabric and the need to bailout Nigeria, we are taking a step further. We will be focusing on key factors that will shape the future of retail businesses in Nigeria. We have called these factors, the Seven Horsemen. We will be discussing the survival of the fittest, depending on how the various actors in the retail industry relate with and play these seven variables.

The Conference will be addressing various points of retail in Nigeria, from how to structure retail business, lack of and high turnover rate of personnel, poor personnel knowledge, poor financing structure, supply chain challenges, to poor shopper information. We will also be handling the retailers’ apprehension about international chains coming to do business in Nigeria and how best technology solutions can support and maximize retail business performance – POS, Inventory Management, Merchandising, CRM and analytics.

What does the conference set to achieve amid the huge challenges faced by the new administration?
Its aim is to drive a creative mind-set for success, provide the retail industry with a directional framework, to guide and chart the most desired transformation path and forge a collaborative response and inspire hope in a brighter future. This year, participants will be congregating on June 16, in victoria Island-Lagos. Speakers will be a mix of  knowledgeable, experienced international and local speakers including Practice and Thought leaders. Amongst the speakers are Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, founder, Sam Ohuabunwa Foundation for Economic Empowerment; Bukky George, the Chief Executive Officer of Healthplus; Stephane Pignard, Region Director, Middle East & English speaking African countries of Cegid Group; Peter Bamkole, Director of EDC Pan-Atlantic University; Lampe Omoyele, MD West Africa, The Nielsen Company; Tokunbo Omisore, MD of Top Services; Sylvester John. West Africa Executive at Game Stores; Adenike Ogunlesi is the founder & CEO, Ruff ‘n’ Tumble; Fatoumata Ba Co-MD of Jumia Nigeria and host of others, . Its promises to address core issues that will birth a robust economy under President Buhari’s administration.