Janet Samuel, Abuja
The Chairman, Senate Committee on Local Content, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has urged Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala to assist in facilitating access to global markets for Nigeria businesses, and enhance export capabilities to bolster economic growth and diversification.
Senator Natasha made the plea while speaking with Dr Okonjo-Iweala at the ongoing 14th assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) holding at the International Conference Centre, Geneva, Switzerland.
She expressed concerns about her desire to see Nigeria take advantage of the opportunities that African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and Centre for the Promotion of Imports from Developing Countries (CBI) offer, respectively.
She believed Nigeria amid the acute dollar shortages can tap the opportunities to boost its non-oil exports under AGOA to earn the much-needed foreign exchange for its economy.
“It is my earnest expectation under the President Bola Tinubu-led administration to see Nigeria take advantage of these export opportunities through your support and by working closely with my office as the Senate Chairman on Local Contents,” she stated.
In her remarks, the WTO Director-General,Dr.Ngozi Okonjo Iweala lauded Senator Natasha for her valuable contributions and promised to look into her recommendations.
She also assured of her readiness to collaborate with the Kogi lawmaker for the greater good of Nigeria, especially in the area of trade and commerce.
AGOA, a US trade initiative established in 2000, allows African nations to export various products, especially non-oil goods, to the United States on favourable terms, thereby promoting economic development and trade on the continent.
It has been a crucial lifeline for many African economies, offering opportunities to access the vast American market.
South Africa, Kenya, Madagascar, Lesotho, and Ghana dominated the 2022 non-oil AGOA exports, accounting for 90 per cent of the total non-oil AGOA exports in 2022, with Nigeria missing on the list.
