The Sustainability Table Discourse Series (STS) will celebrate its 10th anniversary on October 15 and 16, 2026, at the Balmoral Convention Centre, Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, with a renewed focus on turning sustainability commitments into measurable results.

Held under the theme “Leading the Sustainable Development Agenda: People, Planet and Prosperity,” STS @10 will convene representatives from government, business, finance, development institutions, technology and civil society to examine how Africa can close the gap between sustainable development goals and practical implementation.

The event will feature H.H. Muhammadu Sanusi II, Emir of Kano, who will deliver the flagship keynote titled “People, Planet & Prosperity: The Decade of Delivery.”

Other prominent participants include H.E. Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, Deputy Governor of Lagos State; Akintunde Oyebode, Ekiti State Commissioner for Finance and Chairman of the Forum of State Commissioners of Finance; and H.E. Amb. Prof. (Mrs.) Olufolake AbdulRazaq, First Lady of Kwara State.

The programme will also feature Tenioye Majekodunmi, Director-General of the National Council on Climate Change; Dr. Innocent Barikor, Director-General and CEO of the National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA); Rukaiya El-Rufai of the Presidency/National Economic Council and Climate Change; Adam Boros, Vice President of Africa Finance Corporation; Ademola Ogunbanjo, President and CEO of Oando Clean Energy; Rolake Akinkugbe-Filani, CEO of EnergyInc Advisors Limited; and Dapo Otunla, Chief Corporate Services Officer at IHS Nigeria.

A high-level dialogue on mobilising capital and leadership for Africa’s sustainability transition is also included in the programme.

Since its first edition in 2016, STS has brought stakeholders together to discuss the green economy, climate finance, technology, circularity, food security, environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The anniversary marks a strategic shift towards addressing the barriers preventing sustainability commitments from translating into results, including the challenges of scaling innovations, implementing policies and securing investment for viable projects.

Kayode Olaniyan, convener of STS, said the continent’s challenge was not a lack of ambition or discussions but the difficulty of converting plans into practical outcomes.

“Africa does not suffer from a shortage of ambition, declarations or conferences. The real deficit is execution—turning policy into implementation, innovation into scale and credible projects into investible opportunities,” Olaniyan said.

He added that the series would place greater emphasis on what follows stakeholder discussions, rather than simply bringing participants together to exchange ideas.

“Ten years of STS have shown us the power of bringing the right people to the table. But the next decade must be about what happens after they leave it. We are not convening another talk shop. The next decade must be about delivery.”

The summit will centre on four areas: Nigeria’s energy future and expanding energy access; technology, artificial intelligence and the SDGs; the circular economy and responsible production; and resilient food systems, smarter value chains and cold-chain infrastructure.

The anniversary programme will also feature “The Earth Speaks” Sustainability & Arts Exhibition and the launch of a commemorative coffee-table book titled A Decade at the Table: From Conversation to Transformation.

A documentary, Nigeria 2030: The Sustainability Imperative — A Decade of Dialogue. A New Era of Action, will also premiere during the celebrations. Both the book launch and documentary premiere are confirmed parts of the anniversary programme.

With four years remaining until the 2030 SDG deadline, STS @10 is positioning its next phase around stronger implementation, investment mobilisation and collaboration to advance Africa’s sustainability agenda.

SOURCE: Vanguard