Punch Newspaper October 25, 2010 Eko Atlantic City in new marketing campaign By Akinpelu Dada

The developers and marketers of Eko Atlantic city have intensified sales and marketing campaigns to get more Nigerians and foreign investors to buy into the project, which has been designed to extend from the popular Bar Beach in Lagos into the Atlantic Ocean.

Already, a campaign about the project has begun running on the Cable News Network. It is expected to be watched in 200 million households and hotel rooms across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It will run for the next four months.

The campaign, according to the promoters of the project, is targeted at Nigerians in the Diaspora. The beginning of the ambitious marketing campaign was timed to coincide with the 50th Independence Anniversary of Nigeria, according to a statement made available to our correspondent on Friday by the promoters.

The television commercial was produced by CNN International's in-house commercial production unit, Turner Commercial Productions. It highlights the city concept and its development, through a series of sophisticated computer generated images. The campaign features the Executive Chairman of Eko Atlantic, Mr Ronald Chagoury, and Chairman, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Oba Otudeko. The Bank is one of the key partners in the project.

"The main objective of Eko Atlantic city is to create a world-class international city,"explained Chagoury during the 50-second commercial, adding: "We believe that Nigeria is a land of opportunities."

Amid the carefully blended mix of music, words and images, First Bank gave a financial perspective to the city. The commercial showed that Eko Atlantic city would grow on land that was already rising from the sea adjacent to Victoria Island, and that it was destined to become a new gateway to Africa.

The city is being planned and developed by South Energyx Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of the Chagoury Group. It is a city designed for sustainable living, visiting, commerce and business, as well as protecting the natural coastline from erosion. Eko Atlantic city will relieve pressure on the overstretched resources of Lagos, generating space and opportunity. With its wide boulevards and clean, green and congestion-free streets, it will be a striking example of modern urban development.

A quarter of a million people will live in Eko Atlantic city and work in its offices, shops, retail developments and services. Around 150,000 commuters will be on the move in the new city that will be a lively and vibrant place by day and by night.