Public offices and schools will be shut down in the capital during three days of the summit.

At least 15 Heads of State and 1,000 delegates are expected to begin meeting today, May 7, 2014, in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, for the three-day World Economic Forum, WEF on Africa, Thisday newspaper reported yesterday.

In order to ensure the security of guests, President Goodluck Jonathan has ordered the closure of all public offices and schools in the capital during the summit, advising private companies with large staff or customer-flow to also close shop. Similarly, the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, has ordered a massive security cordon around the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, and its environs, The National Mirror daily said.

 “For Africa to remain relevant, we need to adequately educate our people, as it is through education that we can unlock the potential of our youth to enable Africa to compete globally, and create jobs in the new knowledge economy,” President Jonathan underscored before the opening of the conference.

With headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the World Economic Forum is an independent international organisation committed to improving the state of the world by engaging business, political, academic and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. It is the first time a West African country is hosting the conference.

Elsie Kanza, the WEF head for Africa, said the WEF has been working with the continent on an agriculture-related initiative that has mobilised One Billion Dollars (about FCFA 471 billion) in investments in the last two years, creating 33,000 jobs and positively impacting the lives of 2.6 million small-holder farmers. Observers say Nigeria could benefit from the focus and attention of the forum after the country last month overtook South Africa as the Africa’s biggest economy.