Govt agencies at Nigeria’s borders unusually large – WTO

The Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has said that the WTO will review Nigeria’s trade policy to provide valuable insights into the country’s trade policy environment for coordination and direct inspections at the borders.

Okonjo-Iweala disclosed this in her virtual address at the Comptroller-General of Customs Conference in Abuja, pointing out that compared to other economies, Nigeria has an unusually large number of government agencies present at its borders.

She said, “Compared to other economies, Nigeria has an unusually large number of government agencies present at borders. Efforts to foster coordination and ensure direct inspections seem to have only been partially successful. Yes, there has been an effort to track, but we need to do much more.

“Again, this is an area we all know we have struggled with in the past. There has not been much improvement in the data available to me at the WTO. Nigerian agencies need to work with the customs service to streamline their approach to handling the border.”

She said the WTO will review Nigeria’s trade policy, adding that this will provide valuable insights into Nigeria’s trade policy environment and how it can be improved.

“Let me conclude by sharing that this week, WTO members will be reviewing Nigeria’s trade policy. I invite you all to look at the WTO Secretary-at-Large report for Nigeria’s trade policy review, which provides valuable insights on Nigeria’s trade policy environment and how it could be improved.

“The report will be posted on our website on November 13 in the afternoon.I wish you all the best for the productive conference, one that contributes to improving the business climate and growth prospects for our country,” the WTO boss stated.

Meanwhile, Okonjo-Iweala highlighted few potential areas for future reforms to achieve the ambitious growth target of 2050, as she noted that Nigeria must shift gears and start comparing itself with global leaders in facilitating trade.

She identified risk management, predictability, better coordination, and delineation of borders as reforms that Nigeria must look into to achieve the ambitious growth of 2050.

“In many developed economies, the share of consignments elected for physical inspection is lower than one per cent, while in Nigeria it is around 90 per cent, with an additional half a cent of consignment spent.

“Without improving risk management and reducing inspection rates accordingly, speeding up auto and motor clearance in a meaningful manner would be impossible,” she added.