 Our dear host, the Executive Director of the Nigeria Export Promotion Council and President of the Economic Community for West African States Trade Promotion Organization Network, Mr. Shegmu Awoloa. And as Her Excellency Finda Koroma so charmingly described him, Monsieur le Président avec le P miniscule, the Vice President of the Echoers Trade Promotion Organization Network, Mr. Guy M. Bang. The all members of the Echoers Trade Promotion Organization's CEOs present, Your Excellencies of the Diplomatic or Honored Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen. Thanks very much Echoers TPO Network. What an amazing evening we've had. This has been so excellent from the great comparing from Bovee, the comedian and Chigal who abandoned her famous Pigeon English today for an exotic mix of French and Spanish. And the great meal by our Chef Fraggs, the Eden Beginnings dessert from Yemeka, Chika's live music and the West African Dance Fusion. I'm told well we haven't got that yet. What an excellent evening, what a great evening. So let me say to you, network members, if this is the way you entertain, please book me for next year's gala. And on the matter of which of our countries makes the best jolof rice, it seems to me that this controversy will never end. So I sought the consent of our President, President Mohamed Buhari, to attempt to end the dispute one way or the other. So we decided that we will sponsor a competition for who can make the best fusion jolof. It will be called the fusion jolof, who can make the best. Now the first prize is a lot of money, a lot of money and you can be sure there will be a lot of money. I see that I've got everybody's attention. Even those who cannot cook to save their lives are listening intently to this. But whoever will win this, that jolof rice must be able to speak English and French and at least one local language. So if you are not able to achieve that, then you probably wouldn't win. So please accept my commendations first on the inauguration of the Echoise Trade Promotion Organization Network. This is a very farsighted and insightful initiative of the Echoise Trade Promotion Organization and of the Echoise community itself with the support I'm told of the International Trade Center. And of course we must also congratulate the brand new executive of the network, the President of the network, Mr. Shagunawolo, the CEO of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council and the Vice President, Mr. Guy M. Bang, the CEO of the Côte d'Ivoire Export Promotion Organization. And other newly elected Pawnee Executive Members of the network. Congratulations of course also in order for the success of your first annual general meeting held here in Abuja on Thursday. Mr. President of the network and members of this important organization, I'm sure you've already had a surfeit of matters that we all expect you to attend to. But let me add to your misery with a list of my own. What are the tasks and opportunities ahead? I think the first thing is that the network must drive inclusive trade, good inclusive trade initiatives in the sub-region. Secondly, I think the network must expand intraragional trade in the Echoise region. Now that is currently at about 10% of the regions trade with the rest of the world. It means that our trade within West Africa, West African countries is so small that we really should be embarrassed by it. So I think that this is one great opportunity for us to improve that. The third is that you must present a trustworthy platform for cross learning and the sharing of knowledge and information assets between and amongst each other. You must strengthen the voice of TPO's and the private sector. And this is really crucial and I might just elaborate slightly. The vision of our heads of states and governments in resolving to establish the network is to build a more robust and a broader economic space for trade and investment. So a major part of that is that the network must serve as a platform for businesses and trade promotion agencies in our sub-region to share knowledge and business opportunities and develop trade capacity in our sub-region. And of course, there is the final point. There is the imminent task of enabling this sub-region to benefit maximally from the African free trade continental agreements, which of course, as you know, is the biggest opportunity so far for trade not just in our sub-region but in the entire... and also in the entire continent and the world. So we're expecting to see something from the network that will put us on the right... on the right step in the right place to be able to benefit fully from the AFCTA. The task we've set for you is an enormously difficult one but two facts give us all the confidence. One is that we know that this gathering of TPO's has world-class human resource capacity. And that is so evident because every member, every one of the CEOs who is here has proved himself not just in their own countries but in ECOWAS. The combined experience of this platform is simply mind-boggling. The second is our confidence in your commitment that assures us that beyond the tunnel of these challenges lies a really bright light of a new era of trade and prosperity for the work for all of the West Africa region and indeed our continent. So we're expecting great things from this network. And once more let me congratulate ECOWAS and the ECOWAS TPO network on this monumental achievement. And I wish you Godspeed as you undertake this important journey to prosperity and abundance for our people through trade. Thank you very much. God bless ECOWAS.