In April 2004, Economic Associates (EA) in partnership with Oxford Economic Forecasting (OEA) held the 1st Briefing Sessions on ‘Economic Forecasts’. The sessions enabled participants to get a clearer view of the range of business opportunities that are likely to become available in the Nigerian environment, given the risks presented by the global economic outlook and the uncertainties inherent in the new economic policy directions of the Nigerian Government.
There were three sessions in all, each one lasting a full working day.
Session One (April 27) was for Chief Executives and Executive Directors. It was titled Balance of Risks and discussions focused on the balance of domestic/foreign competitive forces for business.
Session Two (April 28) was for Corporate Strategists, Bankers and Stockbrokers. Titled Sector Risks, it focused on Global Sector Forecasts summaries and how they are likely to shape business opportunities in the key business sub-sectors in Nigeria.
Session Three (April 29) was for Policymakers and Corporate Executives with significant public sector commitments. It was titled Policy Risks and it looked at opportunity and challenges for the public sector as presented by the forecasts.
On each day, participants reviewed presentations on Current Global Economic Forecasts and Analysis and Global Industry/Sector Forecast Summaries, which are normally only available from the OEF on subscription, in addition to the Nigerian Economic Forecasts and Analysis that resulted from the collaboration of EA and OEF.
The sessions provided opportunities for the cross-fertilisation of ideas that bear relevance to each of the groups. The sessions also helped decision makers to reduce the risks of being blown off track by unforeseen events, by positioning themselves to take advantage of imminent opportunities at the sector, national or global environment.
