This report documents the strategic plan for the implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) by Nigeria following a diagnostic review of the prevailing trade ecosystem including the participants (traders and service providers), the regulating agencies, prevailing policies, and processes as well as the level of regional integration.
Results and findings of various relevant studies have been curated into an actionable strategic plan for the development of the products and service sectors in Nigeria, an efficient trade system and process, and a seamless implementation plan with easy monitoring and evaluation framework to aid the Federal Government of Nigeria as trading commences under AfCFTA and subsequently the phase II negotiations of the agreement.
The recommendation also aims to chart a pathway for Nigeria to reap the anticipated benefits of AfCFTA, which comes largely via access to the vast African market, while mitigating the negative externalities of open trade on its local economy.
This work was commissioned by the PDF Bridge Programme for use by the Beneficiaries, in particular, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment as a key Policymaker on trade in Nigeria. It is expected that this report will provide current and actionable recommendations that will support the FMITI, NOTN, other Federal MDAs, States and private sector participants in the successful implementation of the AfCFTA and overall drive towards sustainable economic growth.
Development of AfCFTA Strategy and Implementation Plan
Associated resources
This study focuses on the determination of the impact of Nigeria’s textiles import restriction. Specifically, the study describes the structure of the global and Nigeria’s textile industries as well as the global value chain, and the policy environment surrounding the industry in a global and national perspective. It was conducted in 2013 with support from FCDO (formerly DFID).
Export Expansion Grant (EEG) was established under the Export Incentives and Miscellaneous Decrees of 1986 and amended into an Act in 1992 to accomplish the diversification agenda of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN). Other export support funds created under the same Act are the Export Development Fund (EDF) and Export Adjustment Scheme Fund (EASF). The funds have been repositioned in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) of 2017-2020. The EEG is a post-shipment incentive scheme aimed to achieve three key objectives: (i) to enable exporters to expand their businesses more conveniently, (ii) make Nigeria’s non-oil export more competitive, and (iii) facilitate greater and faster foreign market penetration.
PDF II (now PDF Bridge)’s Trade Policy Workstream funded a study on “Analysis and Impact of the Export Expansion Grant on Export Potential, Market Access and Export Competitiveness in Nigeria”. This policy roundtable discussed the findings and recommendations from this study.
The lack of improvement and deterioration in Nigeria’s export trade performance rankings such as measures of time and cost associated with exporting and importing a standardized cargo of goods reinforces the need for Nigeria to undertake urgent and extensive reform to improve its trading across borders performance. This research provides immediate, medium and long term reform options.
Aba Industrial City is an aggregation of thousands of MSMEs and mass producers of industrial goods including garment and leather products. If properly harnessed, the mass production capacities of component clusters of AIC and similar models are capable of positioning Nigeria at a competitive advantage in the global garment and leather industrial space. In 2016, the Textile, Apparel, and Footwear sector contributed N2 trillion ($6.6 billion), approximately 2% of Nigeria’s total GDP, to Nigeria’s economy.
Businesses that operate in a particular domain are expected to adhere to some rules and regulations. Here is a training material that covers some of these requirements. This does not take the place of legal advice.
