L-R Mr. David Adejuwon, Director Trade, Mr. Dauda Kigbu, Permanent Secretary, Trade and Investment and Prof. Mike Kwanashe, VC Veritas University during the meeting of the Enlarged National Focal Point (ENFP) on trade matters held at Shehu Yaradua Centre in Abuja
(TRADE NEWSWIRE): The Chairman of the Enlarged National Focal Point and the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment Mr. Dauda Kibgu, has charged members of the Committee to complete the process of trade review so that Nigeria would have a new trade policy that can give focus and direction to the country’s national and Intellectual trade activities and engagement.
Mr. Kigbu gave the charge today during the meeting of the Enlarged National Focal Point (ENFP) on trade matters held at Shehu Yaradua Centre in Abuja.
The Permanent Secretary said that the ENFP was expected to consider the draft trade policy for Nigeria which has been developed with a view to making inputs and finalization .
He recalled that the last policy was put in trade place in 2002 and was overdue for a review adding that the review of Nigeria’s trade policy was an important assignment and members of the committee to put in their best.
Kigbu said that, the Enlarged National Focal Point on Trade matters was an inter- agency body charged with the responsibility of preparing Nigeria’s position on all trade issues at National, Regional, Continental and Multilateral levels.
“This stakeholders meeting is looking into a draft trade policy which is a continuous engagement of stakeholders. We have had one in Geneva to look at international Perspectives of what we are trying to do. The last time we had trade policy was in 2002 and because society is very dynamic, policy needs to be reviewed at most every five years to make the outlook dynamic to the society. This time around, we want to have it at latest around June, 2013”. Kigbu stressed.
In their deliberations, the stakeholders recalled that Nigeria has pursued an unstable and unpredictable tariff policy with very high rates in some cases, and duty charges imposed with little or no consultation with interested parties adding that Nigeria is now follows consistent and predictable policy having adopted the ECOWAS Common External Tariff (CET) in line with its West African Partners.
The meeting noted that Nigeria has imposed Non Tariff Barriers (NTBs) in the form of trade restrictions or bans on the import of certain products.
Among other things deliberated upon were sectoral analysis and policies, cross-sectoral issues, Trade Regulatory framework, Domestic Trade, International Trade Agreements and the promotion of International Trade policy implementation Framework.
