Charles Nwaoguji and Merit Ibe
Stakeholders in the export sector have called on the Federal Government to end Apapa gridlock as this has caused high cost of transportation and materials.
They said if the situation is not addressed, most of the industries will shut down and relocate to other West African countries.
According to the Group Chairman, Export Promotion Group of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Ede Dafinone, other familiar challenges of the sector such as high cost of energy and funds, multiple levies and taxes, smuggling, also unleashed untold constraints on manufacturing operations.
Dafinone, who made the appeal at the second annual general meeting of the Manufacturing Association of Nigeria, Export Promotion Group (MANEG), also appreciated the Federal Government for the payment of the Export Expansion Grant (EEG) for the 2017 EEG application and further pleaded for the payment of the balances to exporters.
He noted that recently, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) endorsed the use of Export Credit Certificate as an instrument to settle taxes obligations, and appealed to other government institutions like NEXIM, AMCON to do likewise.
Also speaking on the occasion, President of AFREXIM, Prof Benedict Oramah, said the challenges facing Africa on the part to greater integration into the world economy are not only due to skewed nature of the composition of its terms of trade, but also in the extroverted nature of its trade. He stated that inter-regional trade in Europe and developing Asia, which have been the leading drivers of globalisation, account for 67 and 55 per cent of total trade respectively, the performance in Africa is dismal where inter-regional trade accounts for only 16 per cent of total African trade.
“ The AFCFTA, which has now come into force is expected to bring the share of intra-African trade to 22 per cent by 2022, up from the current level of 16 per cent and bring total intra- African trade to about $250 billion, from about $160 billion currently. Since manufactures account for about 60 per cent of total intra-African trade, intra-regional trade in manufactures can rise to more than $150 billion by 2022.