The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Adeniyi Adebayo, disclosed that plans were in the works to find a lasting solution to the problems besieging Nigerian traders in Ghana.
This disclosure was made by the minister on Twitter, stating that the matter was tabled at a stakeholder meeting on Monday.
Adebayo tweeted, “My next engagement was a stakeholders meeting to discuss the issue of continuous closure of Nigerian traders’ shops in Ghana, with the aim of coming to a speedy and lasting resolution.”
This would be one of a series of meetings between the Nigerian Government and the Ghanaian Government over the ongoing constraints of Nigerian traders in sister country Ghana.
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Nigerian Traders’ Battle
In June 2020, Nigerian traders had cried out over the closing of their shops by Ghanaian authorities.
The traders had said that the Ghanaian Government had demanded that they paid the sum of $1 million which followed registration with the Ghana Investment Promotion Council (GIPC).
Appealing to the Ghanaian Government, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, said, “The prospect of them being able to raise a capital base of $1,000,000 before they can trade in goods that may be worth less than $1,000, clearly is a major challenge.”
He urged Ghanaian authorities to review the high price of registration, citing trade relationships enjoyed by both countries.
In response to the request, Ghana’s President, Nana Akufo-Addo, said that the country’s government was willing to review the price downward.
Akufo-Addo added that “measures will be adopted to support law-abiding traders to properly regularise their business operations to alleviate the trade challenges occasioned by the alleged closure of the retail stores, in view of the ravaging impact of Covid-19 pandemic on businesses and families in both countries.”
Wading into the matter days after, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, said that despite the correspondences between the presidents of both countries, “I am a bit surprised that it has not taken place.”
He added, “So, I think what we need to do aggressively is to follow-up with the Ghanaian government and to see that these things are done.
“I am sure you are familiar with the fact that there was a meeting between the Minister of Trade and Industry of Ghana and a team led by our own Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investments in Abuja. That took place on the 3rd of September, while the Rt. Hon. Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila was meeting with his counterpart here.
“Now, it is very evident from what you have said here that there is so much that had gone wrong over a long period of time and we really need to address these concerns in as detailed a manner as possible. And what I can say to you is that this is a matter that concerns the government very greatly…your welfare concerns us greatly.”
