In a bid to promote the sale of made-in-Nigeria goods in West Africa, the Federal Government is to establish an export warehouse in Mali as a hub for penetrating the West Coast market.
The choice of Mali which was revealed to stakeholders at a forum to address the obstacles confronting the promotion of made in-Nigeria products in the West African markets is informed by the country's emerging status that offers a lot of potentials for Nigerian businessmen and entrepreneurs to tap into.
The stakeholders, which included technocrats, seasoned professionals, manufacturers and experts in the non-oil export sector among others met at a one-day sensitisation workshop organised by the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) in collaboration with the Nigeria-Mali Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines, Agriculture and Tourism (NAMACCIMAT) to brainstorm on issues bordering on penetration of the region with made in Nigeria products. The issues include developing Nigerian products for the West Coast markets, market opportunities in Mali (believed to be a link market between West Africa and other African counties) and exhibition and warehousing as market penetration tools.
Speaking at the forum, David Adulugba, executive director, NEPC, lamented that in spite of concerted efforts by ECOWAS to encourage trade among member countries, some key obstacles continued to pose serious challenges to actualising the objectives and goals of ECOWAS.
The challenges, according to him, include lack of access to timely information on prices and market opportunities, inadequate business skills of producers and traders to respond to production and market opportunities. Others are unfavourable trade environment, among which are tariff and long tariff barriers and harassment at the national borders.
While bemoaning the low volume of trade among West African countries compared to what is obtainable in Europe and America, NEPC called on participants to chart a new course capable of facilitating trade and creating an enabling environment for business to thrive within the sub-region.
"Indeed, Africa depends more on import from other continents than what they exchange among themselves. Although, cross border trade is promoted in the continent, effective implementation (coupled with the political will to do so) with a view to achieving the much needed economic integration among member states in the region and Africa as a whole, is regrettably, at its lowest ebb," he noted. He said the private sector has an important role to play within the regional framework of West Africa, "though with the support of public organisations such as the NEPC, NEXIM, SMEDAN, NEPZA, NIPC as well as international donor agencies and other multilateral organisations."
Adulugba, who pointed out that Mali, like other ECOWAS or African countries, offers a lot of potentials for Nigerian businessmen and entrepreneurs to tap into, assured that at the end of the event, participants, "particularly, stakeholders will have useful tips on the best way to eliminate non-tariff barriers to trade through public-private discuss," he said. Permanent secretary in the ministry of commerce and industry, Abubakar Mohammed, noted that the seminar entitled 'ECOWAS markets: The Malian experience' was timely as it fell into the period when the Federal Government is promoting made in Nigeria goods beyond Nigerian shores.
FG to set up export warehouse in Mali (http://www.businessdayonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9692:fg-to-set-up-export-warehouse-in-mali-&catid=85:national&Itemid=340)
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