TheCable

The Chevening Alumni Association of Nigeria (CAAN) will be hosting its maiden national alumni assembly in Lagos on November 18 to discuss Nigeria’s economic independence after 32 years of its existence in Nigeria.

The alumni leadership summit and reunion gala, which is scheduled to hold at Intercontinental Hotel in Victoria Island, is expected to bring together the 1,100 Nigerian alumni of the programme.

This year, 53 Nigerians were awarded a Chevening scholarship.

With an objective to re-position CAAN to deliver on its mandate as “an influential network of intellectual think-thanks, policy influencers and leaders across all development sectors in Nigeria”, the alumni believe that the key vision of being development catalysts has not been fully delivered in Nigeria.

The Chevening Alumni Project Fund (London) and Prosperity Fund (British High Commission) are jointly funding the event to re-energise and empower CAAN to fulfil this important obligation and strengthen the UK’s engagement with Chevening alumni in Nigeria.

“These are critical times for Nigeria; as identified leaders, Chevening alumni need to congregate to address and respond strongly to the very many developmental gaps. The leadership summit is being planned to address the key issue of Nigeria’s economic independence and the role of Chevening alumni in strengthening this cause,” the alumni said in a statement.

“Discussions will feature plenary sessions with alumni and external experts as well as break-out sessions around: Current economic realities, policies and the Nigerian business terrain, Diversification into non-oil sectors, opportunities and challenges across the six geopolitical zones.

“The output of the discussions at the leadership summit will be used to develop a practical 12-month action plan for CAAN across all six geopolitical zones. This will provide an opportunity for more inclusive participation/contribution of alumni across Nigeria.”

The re-union gala hopes to be a social gathering of alumni, political/business influencers and potential Chevening partners.

“This aims to provide the right atmosphere for professional networking and further projection of the Chevening brand in Nigeria.”