2026 Luminary Soirée: Julius Berger, Lagos State outline path to $1 Trillion economy through long-term value creation
Infrastructure, investment and public-private collaboration took centre stage at the 2026 Julius Berger Luminary Soirée as Julius Berger Nigeria Plc and Lagos State Government articulated a shared vision for unlocking value in Africa’s second-largest city economy, and positioning Lagos on the path to becoming a trillion-dollar economy by 2052.
Hosted at the Alliance Française de Lagos, Mike Adenuga Centre, Ikoyi, the annual gathering brought together leading developers, architects, consultants, financiers, investors, policymakers and business leaders for discussions on the theme, The Lagos Proposition: Unlocking value in a city in transformation.
In his opening address, the Managing Director of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Engr. Dr Peer Lubasch, described the Luminary Soirée as a platform that facilitates meaningful dialogue amongst individuals and organisations shaping the future of Nigeria’s economy and built environment.
According to him, the theme encapsulated the opportunities and responsibilities that came with Lagos’ rapid growth.
“We chose the word proposition deliberately because transforming potential into tangible value requires intention, strategy and execution. Potential alone does not build a city; execution does,” Lubasch said.
He noted that Lagos remains one of Africa’s most important urban economies, with a growing population, growing housing demand, and significant infrastructure requirements, presenting both challenges and opportunities.
The Julius Berger chief executive observed that the city’s development was no longer confined to traditional commercial centres but was increasingly extending along the Lekki-Epe corridor, the Lagos-Ibadan axis, and emerging growth locations across the state.
“The question is no longer whether Lagos will grow, but where growth is concentrated, how it can be sustained, and whether what is being built today will stand the test of time,” he said.
Drawing on Julius Berger’s more than 60 years of operations in Nigeria, Lubasch highlighted the company’s contribution to national development by delivering major roads, bridges, airports, industrial facilities, and landmark buildings.
He said the company’s strength was not only in construction, but in its integrated approach to project delivery that combined engineering, logistics, procurement, manufacturing, specialist building solutions and facility management.
According to him, this integrated capability enabled Julius Berger to manage projects from conception to operation while maintaining a single chain of accountability.
Lubasch further challenged the perception that infrastructure projects should be measured solely on their upfront cost, arguing instead that total lifetime value should be considered.
“Many people say Julius Berger is expensive. But when you look at the lifecycle of an asset, you find that asset value is preserved. Our philosophy is not to optimise for the day of handover but to optimise for the lifetime of the asset,” Lubasch said
He explained that higher upfront investment in quality engineering and construction often translated into lower maintenance costs, less downtime, greater durability, and stronger long-term asset value.
Delivering the keynote address, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, described Julius Berger as an integral part of Nigeria’s development story and natural partner in Lagos’ transformation agenda.
She told participants that transformation occurs at the intersection of vision, leadership, infrastructure, investment and execution.
“Julius Berger brings decades of engineering excellence and the capacity to turn bold ideas into tangible infrastructure, while Lagos State brings scale, ambition, enterprise, talent, and an extraordinary pipeline of opportunity,” she said.
According to the commissioner, the true Lagos proposition was contained in what became possible when the right capital, infrastructure and leadership converged at Africa’s most dynamic commercial centre.
Ambrose-Medebem disclosed that Lagos currently has a Gross Domestic Product valued at about $260 billion on a purchasing power parity basis, making it the second-largest city economy in Africa, while accounting for more than 30 per cent of Nigeria’s economic output.
She said Lagos’ long-term vision was anchored on the Lagos State Development Plan 2052, a 30-year strategy built around economic growth, human development, modern infrastructure, and effective governance.
The plan, she noted, had 447 initiatives across 21 strategic sectors and aimed to grow Lagos into an economy worth between $800 billion and $1 trillion, by 2052, adding, complementing this vision was the Lagos State Industrial Policy 2025-2030, designed to strengthen manufacturing, support small businesses, improve infrastructure, and promote innovation.
The commissioner revealed that Lagos attracted N50 billion in investments over the past year, through a combination of domestic and foreign direct investment initiatives.
She cited the establishment of Twinings Ovaltine Nigeria’s first African production facility in Lagos, as one example of growing investor confidence in the state.
Ambrose-Medebem also pointed to Lagos’ emergence as Nigeria’s top-ranked state in ease-of-doing-business reforms, saying it reflected deliberate efforts to create a more competitive business environment.
Infrastructure, she stressed, remained at the heart of the state’s economic agenda, saying that projects such as the Lekki Deep Sea Port, Lagos Free Zone, Blue and Red Rail Lines, and emerging industrial corridors, were helping reposition Lagos as a regional hub for trade, logistics, manufacturing and investment.
She further disclosed that the state’s 2026 budget allocated N1.467 trillion to infrastructure, describing the expenditure as a clear demonstration of government’s commitment to growth.
Addressing housing, the commissioner said Lagos currently had a deficit of about 3.4 million housing units, requiring more than 227,000 new homes annually, and about N6 trillion in yearly investment to bridge the gap.
“No government anywhere in the world can solve a six-trillion-naira annual housing challenge alone,” the commissioner retorted even as she called for stronger collaboration between government and private sector stakeholders, stressing that the future of Lagos was dependent on co-created solutions rather than government action alone.
She concluded by inviting investors and businesses to partner with the state in delivering its long-term vision, saying, we have published our plan to 2052, we have our industrial policy to 2030 and we have committed substantial resources to infrastructure. What we ask in return is the capacity, discipline and commitment to build at the speed the plan demands.”
A major highlight of the evening was a panel discussion moderated by Ayo Mairo-Ese, featuring Yomi Ademola, Chairman of Alaro City and Rendeavour; Kunle Adebajo, CEO of Arup Nigeria; and Odunayo Ojo, CEO of UPDC PLC.
The discussion which had the who’s who in Lagos built environment sector in attendance, explored infrastructure development, housing delivery, industrialisation and investment opportunities, reinforcing a central message shared throughout the evening that Lagos’ future value will ultimately be determined by the quality of execution, partnerships, and long-term thinking that bring ambitions to life.