Nigeria Gives Conditions for Signing AFCTA Deal

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has giving conditions signing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) treaty, saying that the conditions of the free-trade deal hinges on Africa developing its manufacturing base.

President Buhari disclosed that the West African country will not rush into joining the Africa Continental Free Trade Area until it finishes extensive consultations with all stakeholders.

The AfCFTA treaty is one of the topmost initiatives of the African Union Agenda 2063, aimed at creating a single market for goods and services in the continent with free movement of business persons, investments and a single currency across the continent.

Also, the treaty commits countries to remove tariffs on 90 per cent of goods and liberalise services, while sensitive items, which make up the balance 10 per cent, will be phased out later as tariff-free.

The first phase of the agreement was adopted and signed by the African Union Heads of States and governments at its 10th Extraordinary Summit in Kigali, Rwanda, on March 21, 2018.

Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy was a prominent facilitator to the drafting and adoption of the agreement, the country was among the few countries that did not join in signing the final document.

The AfCFTA agreement will only succeed if the continent develops policies that promote production, he said while receiving the report of a committee set up to consider whether the country should join the trade pact.

Nigeria is one of 29 countries yet to sign the agreement seeking to boost intra-African trade, stimulate investment and innovation. The committee urged Buhari to sign the deal, ThisDay newspaper reported Friday, citing panel head Desmond Guobadia.

“Africa needs not only a trade policy, but also a continental manufacturing agenda,” Buhari said. “Our vision for intra-African trade is for the free movement of made-in-Africa goods. That is, goods and services made locally with dominant African content in terms of raw materials and value addition.”

The trade area should not only create wealth for investors, but also prosperity for Africans, Buhari said.

“The benefits of economic growth must be prosperity for the masses,” he said.

Also Read: Nigeria to be the largest beneficiary of AfCFTA – IMF says