As the countdown to the South-South Economic Summit begins, more speakers and resource persons have confirmed their participation at the event scheduled to hold in Asaba, Delta State from April 25-28, 2012.

The latest among the speakers are the president of the Senate, Senator David Mark, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nobel Laureate and playwright, Prof. Wole Soyinka and the National Security Adviser, General Andrew Owoeye Azazi (retired).

Summit spokesman, Chike Ogeah, at the weekend confirmed that while Mark and Azazi would join other lead speakers to connect the broken lines in the nation’s security matrix, Soyinka would unleash his intellect and global experience to chart the way forward for the development of the South-South. Okonjo-Iweala, a global expert in development economics and investment strategy for emerging markets, would lead others to unveil the vast investment opportunities in the South-South, Ogeah said.

Aside being one of the keynote speakers, Soyinka would join the chairman of Visafone, Mr. Jim Ovia, and the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke, to play the role of co-chairmen.

According to Ogeah, the President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, the 17th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States, Admiral Mike Mullen, former Mayor of New York, Rudy Giuliani and first Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Prof. John Lipsky, are among the array of global business and leadership heavyweights who have confirmed their participation at the Summit.

The summit, which will be declared open by President Goodluck Jonathan will attract investors, professionals and top government functionaries both from Nigeria and offshore, Ogeah who is also the Delta State Commissioner for Information said.  The theme of the summit is ‘development, investment and security’, which according to him was “to underscore the fact that the South-South is developing and ready for investment and more importantly that the region is secure for all investors and their investments”.

Other invited speakers include the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, Aliko Dangote, Minister of Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, the Managing Director of Chevron, Andrew Fawthrop, Managing Director of Shell, Mutiu Sunmonu, former Chairman of the Joint Tax Board, Ifueko Omoigui-Okauru, Chairman, African Capital Alliance, Dick Kramer, etcetera.

Kagame is bringing the perspective of a freedom fighter and as the leader who rebuilt Rwanda from the ruins of genocide against monumental odds. He is one of the few African leaders recognised globally as “progressive”. Under his leadership, Rwanda has been called Africa’s ‘biggest success story’ and Kagame has become a public advocate of new models for foreign aid designed to help recipients become self-reliant. He is billed to give a development keynote on ‘Post-conflict Development Policies’.

Mullen, a security strategist and expert, was the immediate past chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the U.S.

Ogeah said Mullen’s presence would reinforce the steely resolve of the Federal Government and the South-South states to ensure the security of lives and property, especially at this time when global peace is being threatened.

According to Ogeah, Giuliani, a global brand in law and good governance skills, will be speaking on ‘Leadership in Times of Crisis”.