Julius Berger Nigeria Plc and the Lagos State Government have outlined infrastructure, investment and public-private collaboration as key drivers for transforming Lagos into a $1 trillion economy by 2052.
The vision was unveiled at the 2026 Julius Berger Luminary Soirée, held at the Alliance Française de Lagos, Mike Adenuga Centre, Ikoyi, under the theme, “The Lagos Proposition: Unlocking Value in a City in Transformation.”
The annual gathering brought together developers, architects, consultants, financiers, investors, policymakers and business leaders to examine opportunities and challenges surrounding Lagos’ rapid economic and urban expansion.
In his opening address, Managing Director of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Engr. Dr Peer Lubasch, said the event was designed to facilitate meaningful dialogue among individuals and organisations shaping Nigeria’s economy and built environment.
Lubasch said Lagos’ transformation required more than potential, stressing that deliberate strategy, quality execution and long-term thinking were essential to converting the city’s growth into sustainable value.
“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,” he said.
He noted that Lagos’ expansion was increasingly extending beyond traditional commercial centres into the Lekki-Epe corridor, Lagos-Ibadan axis and other emerging growth areas, raising the need for infrastructure capable of supporting sustained development.
According to him, the key question was no longer whether Lagos would grow, but where growth would be concentrated, how it could be sustained and whether infrastructure being delivered today would retain its value over time.
Drawing on Julius Berger’s more than six decades of operations in Nigeria, Lubasch highlighted the company’s role in delivering major roads, bridges, airports, industrial facilities and landmark buildings across the country.
He said the company’s strength extended beyond construction to an integrated project-delivery model encompassing engineering, logistics, procurement, manufacturing, specialist building solutions and facility management.
Lubasch also challenged the emphasis often placed on the initial cost of infrastructure projects, arguing that the lifetime value and sustainability of assets should be given greater consideration.
“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,” he said.
Delivering the keynote address, Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, described Julius Berger as an important partner in the state’s transformation agenda.
She said Lagos’ transformation depended on the convergence of vision, leadership, infrastructure, investment and effective execution, noting that Julius Berger brought engineering expertise while Lagos offered scale, ambition, talent and investment opportunities.
Ambrose-Medebem disclosed that Lagos has an economy valued at about $260 billion on a purchasing power parity basis, making it the second-largest city economy in Africa and accounting for more than 30 per cent of Nigeria’s economic output.
She said the state’s long-term development agenda was anchored on the Lagos State Development Plan 2052, a 30-year strategy covering economic growth, human development, infrastructure and governance.
According to her, the plan contained 447 initiatives across 21 strategic sectors and seeks to grow Lagos into an economy valued between $800 billion and $1 trillion by 2052.
She added that the Lagos State Industrial Policy 2025–2030 was designed to strengthen manufacturing, support small businesses, improve infrastructure and promote innovation.
The commissioner further disclosed that Lagos attracted about N50 billion in investments over the past year through domestic and foreign investment initiatives, citing the establishment of Twinings Ovaltine Nigeria’s first African production facility in the state as evidence of growing investor confidence.
She said infrastructure remained central to the state’s economic strategy, highlighting the Lekki Deep Sea Port, Lagos Free Zone, Blue and Red Rail Lines and emerging industrial corridors as projects repositioning Lagos as a regional hub for trade, logistics, manufacturing and investment.
Ambrose-Medebem also disclosed that N1.467 trillion was allocated to infrastructure in the state’s 2026 budget, describing the allocation as evidence of government’s commitment to supporting economic growth.
On housing, she said Lagos faced a deficit of about 3.4 million housing units and required more than 227,000 new homes annually, alongside approximately N6 trillion in annual investment to close the gap.
“No government anywhere in the world can solve a six-trillion-naira annual housing challenge alone,” she said, calling for stronger public-private partnerships to deliver sustainable solutions.
She urged investors and businesses to partner with the state in implementing its long-term development plans, stressing that the scale of Lagos’ ambitions required capacity, discipline and sustained private-sector participation.
A major highlight of the evening was a panel discussion moderated by Ayo Mairo-Ese, with contributions from Yomi Ademola, Chairman of Alaro City and Rendeavour; Kunle Adebajo, CEO of Arup Nigeria; and Odunayo Ojo, CEO of UPDC Plc.
The panel examined infrastructure development, housing delivery, industrialisation and investment opportunities across Lagos, reinforcing the view that the state’s ability to unlock its economic potential would depend largely on the quality of execution, strategic partnerships and long-term investment decisions.
The 2026 Luminary Soirée therefore underscored a shared ambition between government and the private sector to build infrastructure and economic systems capable of supporting Lagos’ transformation into a globally competitive, trillion-dollar city economy by 2052.
