The National Action Committee on African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement has disclosed plans to achieve economically viable communities in Nigeria by growing its intra-Africa export trade volume to $50bn by 2035.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President and Secretary, National Action Committee on AfCTA, Francis Anatogu, made the disclosure in an AfCFTA overview presentation to the media in Lagos on Monday.
He stated that other national AfCFTA aspirations were to establish a highly productive workforce, a business friendly environment, quality infrastructure, export development incentives and a strong national brand.
According to him, Nigeria’s edge was being one of the most entrepreneurial, innovative and ingenious economies as well as the country’s scale of opportunities, quality of talent, scale of ambition and the adaptability and agility of the people.
Anatogu said, “Success with AfCFTA is a diversified and sustainable Nigerian economy with strong linkages with neighbours and the top economies in Africa and a globally accepted country brand.
“We are leveraging AfCFTA to prepare for a post oil revenue driven society. The transformation transcends economic changes (includes mindset change).”
He said the key challenges to achieving the targets were insecurity, funding, infrastructure and regulatory constraints, production and productivity issues as well as predatory trade practices.
Anatogu said some AfCFTA strategic programmes underway were the N50bn Export Expansion Facility Programme and the N2.3tn National Economic Sustainability Plan for export driven economic growth, as well as the N1bn Nigeria-Africa Trade Investment Programme.
In another development, the Federal Government has said Nigeria’s economy has been diversified and no more depended on oil.
Minister of State for Finance, Budget and National Planning, Clem Agba, said this known in Abuja on Monday in his presentation at a public hearing organised by the House of Representatives.
He said the non-oil sector now contributed more to the Gross Domestic Product, stressing that the digital economy now contributed more than oil.
The Committee on National Planning and Economic Development organised the hearing on two motions earlier adopted by the House titled ‘Need for Nigeria to Develop a Long-Term Social and Economic Development Framework Vision’ and the ‘Need to Make Adequate Plans for a Post-Oil Economy in Nigeria’.
-punch