Undefined Policy Inhibits ECOWAS Trade - Waziri

Minister of Commerce, Ambassador Idris Waziri said yesterday that lack of clear policy framework fo trade facilitation and promotion accounted for West Africa's poor trade performance and continued dependence on imports.

The minister also noted that unless the challenges militating against the sub-region's development objectives were addressed, member countries would not derive maximum benefits from their participation in the regional trading system.

He listed the challenges to include heavy debt burden, low purchasing power, lower capacity utilisation, unemployment, and infrastructure in addition to regulatory and institutional problems.
Speaking in Abuja at the Ecobank/Maneg Regional Trade Forum organised by Ecobank Nigeria Plc, Wazir said, "within the ECOWAS countries, there seems to be no clear policy framework for dealing with issues relating to trade facilitations and promotion. Perhaps, this partly accounts for the sub-region's poor trade performance and continued dependence on imports."

Given this scenario, he expressed the need for a flexible, proactive and consistent regional   trade policy framework.

Waziri believed that improving market access and strengthening the rules were not enough to achieve the desired level of growth and development  for Nigeria and other  member countries. He therefore urged that efforts must be made towards improving the capacity to enable  taking full advantage of opportunities created by increased access through ECOWAS integration process.
He advised the forum to consider "the issue of trade facilitation, which refers to a wide range of non-economic measures aimed at promoting expansion of international trade through the smoothing of its flows."
Speaking along the same line,  President of African Business Roundtable, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur expressed the need to re-orientate and  enhance  the capacity  of implementing agencies of trade liberalisation policies, acts and protocols designed to promote the free flow  of goods  and services. 

He urged the public sector to assist these institutions including Customs, Immigrations and other border control agencies, to do their jobs well by  being compliant to good trade  practices. He added that they could also be educated on how their  action or inaction  contribute  or constitute  a hindrance to economic growth and investment drive.