The federal government (FG) has announced plans to identify
at least one exportable product in each local government across the country to
boost non-oil exports and strengthen competitiveness across Africa under the
African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.
Nigeria has about 774 local government areas.
Jumoke Oduwole, the minister of industry, trade and
investment, on Thursday released the Nigeria ‘AfCFTA Achievements Report’ for
2025, outlining the country’s agenda for 2026.
According to the report, investment mobilisation efforts in
2026, involving both foreign and domestic investors, will prioritise the
expansion of productive capacity in key sectors to position Nigeria as the
innovation, production, and distribution hub of the AfCFTA market.
As part of efforts to improve understanding of the trade
pact, the federal ministry of industry, trade and investment (FMITI), alongside
the AfCFTA coordination committee (CCC), pledged to publish a series of briefs
to “demystify the architecture and implementation modalities of the AfCFTA”.
The ministry said the publications would guide the private
sector on trade in goods, digital trade, investment, trade in services, as well
as women and youth participation in trade, while also highlighting compliance
obligations.
In addition, the ministry said institutional coordination
would be strengthened through the publication of an AfCFTA institutional
barometer to promote public accountability.
“This will help measure efficiency and effectiveness in
implementation and recognise high-performing public institutions,” it said.
To improve monitoring, the FMITI said trade data systems
would be updated to capture disaggregated data on goods, services, and the
participation of women and youth in the AfCFTA.
On production and exports, the ministry said it would work
with state governments to identify at least one product that each local
government area can export into the AfCFTA market.
“Nigeria must position itself as the innovation, production
and distribution hub of the AfCFTA market,” the ministry said.
The FMITI added that it would develop a national AfCFTA
market strategy, expand global advocacy for the agreement, support other state
parties with technical assistance, and prepare to host key continental
meetings, including the AfCFTA council of ministers and the intra-African trade
fair 2027.
‘NIGERIA NOW FIRST AFRICAN COUNTRY TO PUBLISH 5-YEAR AfCFTA
IMPLEMENTATION REVIEW’
The report also said Nigeria is now the first African
country to conclude and publish a review of its AfCFTA implementation in July
2025, meeting the agreement’s five-year milestone as stipulated in Article 28.
The FMITI said the AfCFTA CCC, under the direction of
Oduwole, had convened the ‘AfCFTA Public Sector, Private Sector and Press (P3)’
summit to foster a shared understanding of the AfCFTA framework and its
implications and opportunities for Nigeria.
“The Summit kickstarted a nationwide AfCFTA Sensitisation
and Consultation Campaign that will formulate a national blueprint to ensure
the AfCFTA works for Nigeria,” the report noted.
According to the ministry, key AfCFTA institutions now have
clearly defined roles, a published national action plan, and a performance
assessment barometer in place to drive implementation and accountability.
The report also noted that in 2025, the FMITI began
collaborating with the ministry of budget and economic planning and state
governments to identify export-ready products in every local government area
and outline a national AfCFTA market strategy.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com