The Nigerian Cable Manufacturers Association has mandated the federal government to play a crucial role in breaking down tariff barriers for Nigerian companies to maximize opportunities in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
This was made known by MicCom Cables and Wires COO Ms. Bukola Adubi while speaking at a panel at the recent 2022 Nigerian Practical Content Forum (PNC) which was held in Uyo, Akwa State. ibom.
Speaking at the theme event Deepening Nigerian Content Opportunities in the Gas DecadeHe said that, according to the principles of the agreement, it should be a fantastic opportunity for the country.
“To the cable industry, we are seen as one of the industries in Nigeria that is already set up fantastically well. If you ask anyone, they will tell you that the cables made in Nigeria are fantastic. But then, it will make sense that we can transcend beyond Nigeria.
“It will make sense that our members (Nigerian Cable Manufacturers Association) can go to Ghana; they can go to the Ivory Coast; they can enter Senegal,” said Ms. Adubi.
He noted that despite the many merits of the AfCFTA deal, he fears it will not work due to issues related to tariffs and government policies, citing the failure of the Economic Community of West African States’ trade liberalization scheme as an example. (ECOWAS).
“But then, my concern is with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) trade liberalization scheme. It doesn’t work And the reason it doesn’t work is that there are many problems related to government policies: tariffs and red tape in member countries. So, first and foremost, governments have a very important role to play in terms of breaking down these barriers to facilitate effective trade,” he said.
Ms Adubi acknowledged that while there will be red tape in implementing the agreement, various governments need to rise to the occasion and ensure that policies are properly regulated to avoid creating another set of challenges for businesses.
“As much as there is red tape, the government has to be there to regulate these things so that it doesn’t create another bottleneck,” Ms Adubi said.
“As much as it is, AfCFTA is a great market asset, a combined $3 trillion of GDP; the number of people it can reach is immense,” adding that there is no excuse for Nigeria not to be at the top of its game regarding the deal.
He joked that despite the fact that the implementation of the AfCFTA started in January 2021, Nigeria had not done much with regard to the implementation of the agreement.
“We need to get our act together to make this work, and it will work,” Ms Adubi said.
He also noted that playing in the AfCFTA market means that Nigerian companies need to be above average because the terrain will be quite different from the domestic market.