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Ifeanyi Onuba
President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday explained why he had not yet signed the African Continental Free Trade Agreement which is expected to increase intra-African trade by 52.3 percent. % against 19% currently. [19659003TheFrenchExecutiveCouncilhad14monthsapprovedofNigeriasignel's-frameworkagreementfortheimplementationoftheinitiative
But a few days before the signing of the agreement, Buhari has withdrawn from the meeting of the African Union where this pact would be signed by 55 African countries
Already, 44 African countries had approved the agreement that would allow them to form a continental free trade zone of 3 billion dollars covering 1.2 billion people.
The CFTA identifies seven priority action groups This is trade policy, trade facilitation, productive capacity, trade-related infrastructure, trade finance, trade facilitation, # 39; business information and factor market integration.
At the opening ceremony of the 25th General Assembly of shareholders of the African Export-Import Bank in Abuja, he stated that the complexity of the Nigerian environment l '. required consultation with all stakeholders before entering into this agreement.
He said with a country as big as Nigeria with a population of about 200 million people, there was a need to lead all stakeholders in the process of entering into such a pact .
He said, "In Africa, Nigeria has a very unique role to play in. We are a vast nation of nearly 200 million people with a diverse language, culture, endowment, and natural aspirations.
"What we have in common at all levels is that Nigeria is a trading nation.
"Trade is important and the terms of trade are important, so it is necessary to ensure that our national interests and our regional and international obligations are balanced."
I have asked the relevant agencies to conduct intensive and extensive consultations on the Continental Free Trade Agreement.
"Nigeria is a federation of 36 states plus Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, 774 local governments and millions of stakeholders who need to be consulted and listened to to ensure optimal results.
"Significant progress has been made with these consultations.The team met with key stakeholders in our six geopolitical areas;"
"However, a clear message emerged: any agreement must be at once free and fair. "
The President explained that the search for prosperity of Africa could only be done by supporting
Buhari said that his administration had adopted an inclusive growth policy , adding that his government was determined to achieve this by reducing the country's excessive dependence on crude oil
"until now, we have invested aggressively. "We also allow many Nigerian entrepreneurs in the entertainment industry to mention a few," he added.
During the event, a total loan of $ 1.4 bn was disbursed by AFREXIM Bank to the Bank of Industry and the Dangote Group.
A breakdown of the amount showed that $ 750 million was donated to the Bank of Industry for loans to the Micro, Small and Medium Business Sector, while $ 650 million was provided to the group Dangote to finance his refinery project.
The Director General of the Bank of Industry, Olukayode Pitan, signed the agreement on behalf of his bank. The group, Mr. Aliko Dangote, signed for his company
The president of AFREXIM bank, Dr. Benedict Oranmah, made a presentation on the bank's performance for 2017, adding that the bank had become a force Positive change in Africa
He said the bank's resistance had been tested in 2015 and 2016 due to commodity shocks threatening progress made by the continent.
He said that commodity shocks prompted the bank to intervene to stabilize trade. By default, this threatened the payment system on the continent.
He said that in December 2017, about $ 9 billion had been disbursed on a revolving basis to stabilize the trade default on the continent.
He said that the bank had also In 1965, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, was elected new president of the General Assembly of AFREXIM Bank. Minister of Finance of Rwanda, Dr. Ndagijimane Uzziel
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