participation. in view of this, it has become vital for african countries to promote investors ’ confidence in their respective economies. this requires promoting transparent and favourable macroeconomic environment which is crucial for private sector participation. steps would have to be taken by african central banks to reposition themselves as reputable and transparent institutions. 12. ladies and gentlemen, the final session dealt with establishing the role of central banks in financing infrastructure for industrial development. african countries are plagued by gross infrastructure deficit, and most interventions are largely dependent on annual government budget which can hardly bridge the infrastructure deficit gap. it has been said that infrastructure is a precursor for industrial development. african central banks need to develop strategic agenda for complementing fiscal policy, to bridge the wide infrastructure financing gap in the continent. this is an area that we can contribute in by finding creative financing model to help bridge this gap. 13. ladies and gentlemen, i am aware that experienced resource persons have been assembled to lead discussions on these complex issues enumerated above. on this note, i implore all participants to take full advantage of this meeting by contributing effectively to the discussions. it is my hope that your deliberations would reveal series of policy options to effectively and efficiently promote industrialization for inclusive and transformative development in africa. 14. distinguished colleagues, ladies and gentlemen, i wish you all a successful and fruitful deliberation. 15. thank you for listening. bis central bankers ’ speeches

joseph o sanusi : information and communication technology for the social transformation of nigeria special remarks by dr joseph o sanusi, governor of the central bank of nigeria, delivered at the dinner / investor forum organised by leapfrog venture partners ltd during the national summit on smieis, victoria island, lagos, 10 june 2003. * * * the representative of the honorable minister of industries, the executive governor of lagos state, his excellency, alhaji bola ahmed tinubu, chief executives of banks and other financial institutions, members of non - governmental and multilateral agencies, distinguished industrialists, ladies and gentlemen. it is my pleasure and privilege to make this special remark at this historic investor forum / dinner aimed at educating and enlightening us on the efforts of leapfrog venture partners nigeria limited in promoting and training skilled manpower for the social transformation of nigeria. let me state at the onset that, when the organizers of this forum approached me to be the special guest of honor, i was hesitant in accepting it. however, because of how close this subject is to my heart and in my firm belief of the role of information and communication technology ( ict ) in the promotion of smes in nigeria, i accepted to attend. may i seize this opportunity to congratulate the organizes of the forum, for their foresight and wisdom in selecting such an important and relevant theme, “ information and communication technology for the social transformation of nigeria ”. the effort is also commendable because currently we require massive investments in information and communication technology in order to develop our socio - economic infrastructure. as you all know, advances in information and communication technologies ( icts ) were pivotal to the recent social and economic transformation in both the industrialized and developing countries. the increasing spread of icts has opened new opportunities for developing countries to harness for the attainment of their socio - economic and developmental goals. it is, pertinent to note that, although there have been several efforts at the highest levels of government and industry to promote the construction of a national information infrastructure, the attempt by leapfrog ventures is a very bold step by a private entrepreneur in this direction. we must all join hands with leapfrog ventures in order for nigeria to reap the predicted social and economic benefits. distinguished participants, ladies and gentlemen, as you are aware, recent advances in digital technologies have separated further, the divide between the rich and poor countries. since there is no comprehensive solution for this problem