UIM E1 championship kicks off today in Lagos. The E1 Series is launched to bring high-performance electric powerboat racing to cities across the world merging speed, sustainability, and spectacle.
Nigeria has already lost 35% of its mangroves, placing Lagos’ coastlines at risk of erosion and biodiversity collapse.
At a pre-event press conference yesterday, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, Commissioner for Information & Strategy, Lagos state, said that: “With the UIM E1 Lagos GP drawing worldwide attention, Lagos is uniquely positioned to showcase Africa’s leadership in blue economy innovation.
“It's all about innovation, creativity, the spirit of Lagos and the economy too. You can see the number of people that are coming to Lagos in the past one month over this event from overseas. So, it's all about Lagos joining the rest of the world as a model mega city where businesses can thrive, where innovation can thrive.
“And it's also about sustainability, clean energy and all of that. You can see that these are electric power boats. This is the kind of thing that we have never seen here before. So, for us in Lagos, we are joining the conversation about sustainability, about clean energy, about low emission so that the world can know that all of the things we are saying about climate change, that Lagos is also part of the conversation, more so, is about what I call the spirit of Lagos.
“We want to do things others have not done before we want to be number one. So, for us, it's much more than a race. It's about our culture, because you also see our people on the waters tomorrow (today), when the opening ceremony begins, it's all about our culture. It's all about our economy. It's all about Lagos GDP, this is receiving a boost through this event. All the hotels around here are fully booked Lagosians who cannot even come here to watch at the fan zones, they are looking up to hooking up on television”.
As West Africa’s economic hub, Lagos has the influence to define how the region integrates climate resilience with inclusive growth. With the UIM E1 Lagos GP drawing worldwide attention, Lagos is uniquely positioned to showcase Africa’s leadership in blue economy innovation. The global spotlight is already here and the time to act is now. E1 Lagos GP is not just an event. It is the beginning of a new annual sustainability tradition.
