PUNCH, March 23th, 2015,
By: Maureen Ihua-Maduenyi
The promoters of Eko Atlantic City, South Energyx Nigeria Limited, said the project had been applauded as a top project in the country by leading property investors at MIPIM 2015, the international real estate show for professionals, held in Cannes, France.
According to a statement by the firm, a specialised case study of the project was presented to anJLL audience of real estate experts and investors at the event.
The Chairman for Sub-Saharan Africa, JLL, Mr. Mark Bradford, said, “For a lot of people that were here today, it was pretty eye opening to see the scale and ambition of the project and I think that Eko Atlantic should almost become a marketing tool for the potential of real estate in the country because it is such an outstanding example.
“It is the pinnacle really of ambition on the continent and definitely something that more people should get to learn about.”
The Vice Chairman, South Energyx Nigeria, Mr. Ronald Chagoury Jr., said it was now time for international companies to take a much closer look at investment potential in sub-Saharan Africa, especially Nigeria.
“If you can just get over some of the perception issues for Nigeria and if you can look at the market as it actually is, you will automatically have an advantage over everyone else.
“Nigeria is now the continent’s largest economy and has a rapidly growing population. We have a need for everything and the key ingredients for success are being present, consistency and quality,” he was quoted as saying.
Chagoury, who spoke on ‘Sub-Saharan Africa — Let there be light’, noted that the real estate sector was desperately short of housing.
“We have a shortage of 16 million homes in Nigeria with a shortfall of five million homes in Lagos alone,” he added.
Chagoury also stated that Eko Atlantic would total 10 million square metres of land reclaimed from the sea and would become home to 250,000 residents and another 150,000 commuters.
He noted that 90 per cent of the infrastructure would be completed by the end of the year.
“Eko Atlantic is 100 per cent privately funded. It is a registered free zone and will have reliable 24 hours utilities such as an independent natural gas power plant, independent water and sewage treatment plants, and a state-of-the-art fibre optic network,” he said.
