BY NGOZI ONYEAKUSI

The Chairman of Odu’a Group of Companies, Otunba Bimbo Ashiru, will deliver the keynote address at the 2024 Brands and Marketing Conference scheduled for December 6, 2024.

Organised annually by Brand Journalists Association of Nigeria (BJAN), the conference is billed to hold at Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, by 10am on the date.

The conference is a flagship event that brings seasoned analysts and informed stakeholders together to focus on key issues in the Nigerian integrated marketing communications industry.

The theme for this year’s edition is: REBUILDING CONSUMER CONFIDENCE: ADDRESSING POLICY IMPACT AND MARKET REALITIES.

Some of the issues from the keynote presentation by Otunba Bimbo Ashiru, will be dissected by brand experts and analysts lined up as panelists.

BJAN Chairman, Clara Okoro, noted that the conference will focus on the imperatives in developing how government policies such as interest rate adjustments, tax policies and subsidy removal influences disposable income and consumer spending.

“We would be exploring strategies for businesses to adapt to weakened consumer purchasing power and shifts in consumption patterns due to policy changes.

“We would be examining how brands can pivot their strategies to maintain relevance and profitability in an environment of economic pressure and policy-induced constraints,” Okoro said.

Otunba Bimbo Ashiru was a two-term Honourable Commissioner for Commerce and Industry in Ogun State from 2011 to 2018
Under his stewardship, the business environment of the state developed beyond imagination with over 1, 279.84% increase in internally generated Revenue of the State. Over 300 factories/ companies established their presence in Ogun State with a cumulative investment profile of about N691.77 Billion in 2014, compared to N377 Billion in 2013. This placed Ogun State in first position in Nigeria, according to the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria. During his time, approximately 75% of Manufacturing Foreign Direct Investment into the country between 2011 – 2016 came into Ogun State.

Also, during his tenure, the World Bank Group, in its Doing Business in Nigeria 2014 Report, ranked Ogun State as one of the best five States in terms of ease of doing business against the 36th position in its 2010 report. He also facilitated the creation of a One-Stop-Shop Investment Center (OSSIC) which sits within the Ministry of Commerce & Industry to assist potential investors with procedures for investment and documentation processing.

Ashiru is also an Investment and Strategic Management expert, a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (FCIBN); among others.

He is a recipient of numerous awards among which include Best Commissioner of the Year – Nigerian NewsDirect Award 2015,
Most Proactive Commissioner – FIBAN Excellence Award 2013 and Award of Honour for Outstanding Leadership – Manufacturers Association of Nigeria.