President Muhammadu Buhari, on Monday emphasized the importance for African nations to back local entrepreneurs to develop scale and boost productivity.
Buhari stated this in Durban, South Africa, at the opening ceremony of the 2nd Intra-African Trade Fair 2021, where he assured attendees that his delegation was participating at the event with “full force” to maximize its advantages.
The Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, President Buhari in a statement stated that providing motivation to the public sector would encourage businesses to formalize and observe the pre-existing regulations.
“Let me assure you that Nigeria has come to Durban in full force to actively participate in this very important trade fair and take full advantage of all the opportunities it provides. We have streamlined the country’s participation under one roof to enable you access all the information you need,” he said.
Buhari noted his anticipation of a good outcome by Nigerian businesses at the Durban Fair was based on the performance at the last edition which took place in Cairo, Egypt which fetched deals valued at over $3.3 billion.
Current records reveal that Intra African trade is responsible for just 15 percent of their transactions.
READ ALSO: ASUU: ‘Government Cannot Solely Fund Education’ – Ngige
The Nigerian leader expressed concern that most of Africa’s existing challenges, whether security, economy, or corruption, can be traced to the inability over the years to domesticate the production of most basic requirements and provide jobs to her teeming and dynamic youth population.
He said, “under the African Continental Free Trade Area, we can double our intra-African trade by 2030, reduce our reliance on imports and therefore create more jobs within the continent.
“We cannot achieve this goal by talking alone. The implementation will be a difficult journey. But all challenges are surmountable if both the public and private sectors collaborate.
“On the public sector side, Governments must support local entrepreneurs to build scale and therefore improve productivity.
“This means providing incentives to encourage our businesses to formalise and comply with laid down regulations,’’ he said.
On the rules of engagement for the free trade initiative, President Buhari reminded fellow Heads of State and participants at the trade fair:
