In a bid to strengthen the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) and position Lagos for Strategic Regional Development and priority Investment, the Lagos State Government has affirmed that the bridge between diagnosis and delivery in Physical Planning is built with bricks of data and mortar of digital monitoring.
The Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment (MCCTI), Hon. Folashade Bada Ambrose-Medebem, revealed this while delivering a Ministerial presentation at the Lagos Physical Planning Summit 2026 (LPPS 2026), convened by the Lagos State Government under the theme “Diagnosis to Delivery: Positioning Lagos for Strategic Regional Development and Priority Investment Agenda.”
Speaking on the sub-theme “Enhancing EoDB through Planning Data Analytics and Digital Monitoring,” the Commissioner said the Ministry is shifting from reactive to predictive planning by analysing Demographic shifts, Market trends, and Infrastructure capabilities to guide Investors on where to establish their operations for maximum viability, adding that Industrial clusters and Commercial hubs are being mapped to ensure that Regional Development is strategic rather than Organic.
She explained that improving the Ease of Doing Business is not only about reducing the number of days it takes to register a business, but about the ongoing, day-to-day experience of that business, which is why digital monitoring is non-negotiable.
“By digitising the monitoring of Commercial activities and cooperatives’ operations, we eliminate bottlenecks and reduce human interference, making the system fairer and faster,” she stated, noting that digital tools allow the Government to detect logistics bottlenecks and regulatory hurdles in real time and intervene swiftly to keep the wheels of Commerce turning.
The Commissioner further disclosed that the Ministry is using data to monitor and support the Cooperative sector, which she described as the backbone of Grassroots Commerce, adding that digitising their operations will unlock massive capital for Local Investments.
She reaffirmed that every Trade and Investment policy formulated by the Ministry will be backed by rigorous Physical Planning data, stressing that the Government will no longer plan in silos, but in synergy with the Ministry of Physical Planning.
“By aligning Physical Planning with digital analytics, Lagos will not just be the Commercial Capital of Africa; it will be the smartest, most data-driven, and most investment-ready Mega-City in the world,” she said, calling for partnership with Planners, Investors, and Innovators to make the vision a reality.
Earlier in his keynote address, the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Waterfront and Infrastructure Development, Engr. Soretire Oluwole, said the Summit was convened to confront the realities of rapid urbanisation, Climate change, and the need for innovative project finance, legal and institutional frameworks, and the monitoring of all master plans.
He said the Administration’s vision is to give Lagos a new direction as a returner, noting that the State’s activity had made it a Mega-City Business Campus, and that from the deliberations came a clear set of resolutions.
The Governor explained that the Town planner is now a practical player, not a background Technician, but a Leader who decides how land serves roads, schools, markets, utilities, and recreation before it is given over to dwellings.
He listed the resolutions to include a commitment to reduce the burden on investors by simplifying planning permits and cutting through the multiple agencies that stand across the process; the integration of neighbouring leaders in the planning process, as labour does not end at its Administrative orders; a review of land use data and implementation; and the embracing of innovative finance, including Public-Private Partnerships, Municipal funds, and Crowdfunding.
Others are a commitment to contemporary technology and smart growth, and the establishment of a Government-sharing implementation Committee and a dedicated working group, because a resolution without one working group is merely a mission.
Also, the Keynote Speaker and former Governor of Lagos State, Mr Babatunde Fashola, urged the State to move beyond the admiration of history and towards complete action, stressing the need to plan for the Creative Economy, Tourism, and the equipping of standards, noting that if there is a plan, money will definitely follow it.
Addressing the State’s progress, the Governor stated that the purpose of the review is not to further accept, but to measure, as what gets measured gets managed, while acknowledging that master plans are being implemented too slowly, Infrastructure finance remains green, and some buildings still rise out of compliance.
He noted that the challenge was no longer a shortage of ideas, but the strengthening of institutions, and announced that the next summit will not ask what should be done, but will report what has been done.
The administration reaffirmed its commitment to measurable outcomes, specific reforms on specific targets tracked by a specific body, all aligned to the Sustainable Development Goals, the Lagos State Development Plan Charter 2052, and the priorities of the current Administration.
