LERE Fashola is the CEO, Legal Blitz, publishers of ESQ Legal Practice, a reputable legal magazine on the African continent and organisers of ESQ Seminars. Last week, ESQ seminars hosted stakeholders and finance experts across Africa to a week-long Project Finance summit at the Civic Centre in Lagos. In a chat with OLUSHOLA RICKETTS andNKEIRUKA HYACINTH, Fashola spoke on the essence of the summit, how it may help break new grounds in project financing for economic development, what ought to be done to stamp out corruption from the society and sundry issues.From your diverse interactions with stakeholders in the nation's business clime, what have you identified as the prevailing limitations to the average businessman'In Nigeria, the business environment is not very friendly. One major challenge is the issue of funding. We have not started running banks; what we run in Nigeria are 'moneylenders.' You dare not approach banks to develop your business or idea no matter how reasonable it might be.Also, the way businesses are run in Nigeria is for quick profit, as the incubation period is not allowed, which encourages corruption. If the Nigerian environment were so friendly, most Nigerians in Diaspora would have come over to invest. Just imagine a situation where you take a loan from the bank and you are expected to pay 36 percent interest rate. How many businesses can you run in Nigeria that can give you such profit margin without involving yourself in corruption'The focus of the world is now on Africa and Nigeria ought to be the first country that should benefit from the immense opportunity that lies ahead. To achieve that however, we must act and do things right.And how do we get back on track for true national development'The way forward is through legislative advocacy and for our Civil Society to be active. When I say Civil Society, I am not talking about groups who do not know how to engage the government meaningfully. You will find out that most of them are politically inclined; they are politicians. The primary purpose of a genuine legislative advocacy must at all times be for the utmost good of the society. In a situation when people lead struggles against government just to gain popularity or political relevance leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. A little wonder, the federal government finds it easy to dismiss their agitations as mere politicking. Kudos must however be given to the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for her constructive engagement with the government in recent times. But a lot still needs to be done as it has come to a point where we need people of integrity at the helms of affairs.Are you satisfied with the goings-on in the judiciary and legal business'How can any sane person be satisfied with what is happening today' I am not satisfied with the Legal business and nobody is! I have always said that corruption starts from the house of the lawyers. But I won't blame lawyers so much, as we are also a part of the larger society. Though lawyers are supposed to be the conscience and guidance of the nation, unfortunately our system encourages corruption. Lawyers are part of the society, including Judges. How would anyone be hardworking when he knows that he can make easy money' All our mechanics, welders, vulcanisers have turned Okada riders' it is now an economy of dying enterprises.In what ways is ESQ contributing to national development and the less privileged'We have various ways and for a through which we impact on the economy through constructive engagement with stakeholders in the economy. Aside these, we also give back to the society in many ways. At all our trainings and workshops, we give special discounts to young lawyers who are solo practitioners or unemployed. We also give complimentary passes to interested undergraduate law students. We have set out a Carol, Arts exhibition and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) awards to contribute to the community and raise funds for the less privileged in the society.ESQ Black and White Carol is a special night that brings together leading legal practitioners, In-house counsel, senior executives in companies, CEOs and leading lights in the society under an atmosphere of arts and music to celebrate. The event is put together to promote Corporate Social Responsibility among Nigerian Lawyers and to raise support for a specific charity project. Last year, we raised funds for Christ Against Drug Ministry (CADAM), a faith-based Non Governmental organization. CADAM is committed to rehabilitating men, women and youths. This year we hope to also impact on the society and we will be raising awareness for a health related project that will be announced very soon. We are also launching our ESQ CSR Award for Lawyers. We are going to open nominations very soon as some Law firms are doing well but we want to know what they are doing to impact the society other than their legal work which to us is the core of their business.What informed ESQ Project Finance Summit 2012'In recent years, we have seen significant increases in the number of projects and opportunities in Africa. But recent World Bank report estimates that over $93bn/year (15% of sub-Sahara's GDP) will be needed over the next decade to upgrade Africa's infrastructure, covering power, transport, irrigation and the like. And while there are some important developments in the continent such as rise of new players involved in project development; public-private-partnerships in infrastructure; increase in specialized infrastructure funds; increase in Chinese and Arab participation in African infrastructure projects and so on, the modalities for financing projects have changed considerably. This therefore reiterates the urgent need for those involved in the development and implementation of these projects to take cognisance of the changes and develop a sound understanding of the new and varying financial instruments.This was the essence of our just-concluded inaugural ESQ Project Finance Summit, which was supported by Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and the law firm of Banwo & Ighodalo. The summit dwelt on issues that sought to assist stakeholders in moving project initiatives forward across the continent. It provided insights into the changing world of project finance in Africa with focus on Power, Oil and Gas, Telecommunications, Transport and other infrastructure. The Conference critically reviewed different near-term or completed projects across Africa, recent legal and legislative developments in various countries and challenges of the electrical and power sectors; governmental promotion of infrastructure development projects; renewable energy as the new frontier; public/political attitudes towards private investments; collateral structuring; commercial bank views and conditions precedent to borrowing.Delegates broke into sessions of intensive workshops on key project finance issues and successful negotiation techniques based on real life and hypothetical cases involving African Regional Development Banks, Infrastructure Funds, Project Finance Experiential Sessions for contractors and suppliers, Export Credit Agencies, Case Study Presentations, BRIC Countries, Rise of Arab Funds, among others.Why did you found ESQ Legal Practice'I studied Law at the University of Ibadan and went to the Nigerian Law School, Kano after which I was called to bar. Initially, I wanted to be a judge. But fresh from Law School, I was opportune to be admitted into the firm of Adepetun Caxton Martins Agbo & Segun. After a brief stay in Adepetun, I moved to Kola Awodein & Co.While I was at Adepetun, I worked in the Energy Project Finance Department. One day, I came in contact with an American magazine produced by the American Bar Association. Before then, I had written about two biographies. I wrote the first one in 2000, while the second one was in 2006. In the magazine, I saw lots of ideas on how to move the law practice forward. The magazine opened me up to various aspects on globalization in legal practice. What I read inspired me and I decided to set up Legal Blitz.After consultations, I realized that Legal Blitz wasn't something I could combine with a full time job. So I had to resign and started ESQ Legal Practice. I began ESQ with just N250 that I spent in transporting myself to Victoria Island where I dropped a letter for Dr. Oba Otudeko. Before then, I had only met him at an event but we never spoke. I sent in a letter to sponsor the first project we did. He replied with a very inspiring letter and a cheque of N250, 000 was attached to it. That was what brought us to where we are today. We are also grateful to all those hopeful and inspiring people who took interest in us very early and encouraged us to be where we are today.In a broader sense, our focus at ESQ is to be the foremost provider of capacity development for Nigerian lawyers, both In-house and private sector, as well as to generate and continue to debate critical issues such as regulation and policies that affect the business world across Africa. We hope to build a company that can be an engine room and think-tank for future development. By achieving this, we hope to support the economy and contribute meaningfully towards the growth of the society. We have come to understand that law plays an integral part in the development of businesses on the continent.
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