Finnish education expertise in the spotlight in Lagos, Nigeria

14.09.2022

Lagos state was all about education at the turn of August and September 2022 with both the Lagos State Education Summit, and TOSSE, Africa’s largest education trade show and conference, placed as consecutive events during the same week.   

The main theme of the summit was Creating a sustainable fit for purpose education model and the two-day event was attended by all relevant local stakeholders. In addition to remarks by H.E. Ambassador of Finland to Nigeria Ms. Leena Pylvänäinen and H.E. Ambassador for Education Ms. Marjaana Sall, several Finnish organizations shared their expertise in different panel discussions throughout the summit.     

The strong Finnish presence continued towards the end of the week at the two-day TOSSE trade show and conference. Finnpartnership hosted a stand at TOSSE, together with the Finnish Embassy in Abuja, Business Finland Nigeria, and Education Finland. Seven Finnish companies and educational institutions had representatives at the stand and some of these experts also contributed to the panel discussions organized at the trade show. Additionally, Finnpartnership moderated a session at TOSSE themed Co-creating a sustainable education model – The Finnish experience.     

Lagos is the largest city in Africa, and Nigeria holds the largest population on the continent. The nation’s population is set to double by 2050, from roughly 200 million to 400 million. The education sector and its models are already facing significant challenges including overcrowding and funding. The demand for innovative solutions is critical. The strong Finnish presence at the education super week further rooted the understanding of our expertise, and Finnpartnership is at the disposal of any parties interested in discussing opportunities on the Lagosian market. A market that can be assessed to almost require local presence if one is to tap into the potential. As one of our Lagosian partners put it: “…the solution needs to be adapted to the local context, it is important to pilot, you need to be physically present and also carefully review your pricing model. You need to be consistent. For Lagosians, seeing is believing.”

Business Partnership Support covers 70% of expenses for projects implemented by SMEs, with Nigeria as the target market. The project goal can for example be long-term licensing, setting up a JV or subsidiary company. Project phases on the other hand can include partner identification, a more detailed project study and piloting, preceded by localizing the solution.