By Muhammad Amaan
The Federal Government says it is enhancing efforts towards diversification of the economy and achieving the country’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Doris Anite, said this at the Re-Inauguration of the National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) in Abuja.
According to her, the inauguration is to create greater collaboration towards an ecosystem where stakeholders can effectively work together to address difficulties.
She said it would also help in generating more opportunities for the global marketplace.
“Combining the trade facilitation and liberalisation sub-committee of the Presidential Council on Industrial Revitalisation (PCIR) and the National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) into a single entity was a strategic move.
“This aims at achieving the country’s economic diversification and sustainable development goals.
“The benefits of this committee to the present administration’s sustainable development initiatives is significant and cannot be over emphasised,” she said.
Dr Anite reaffirmed that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) established the NTFC in 2014 to ensure harmonised, standardised, and streamlined trade processes and procedures, which contribute to Nigeria’s ease of doing business.
She urged all NTFC members to work together to enhance trade facilitation by worldwide best practices, streamlining trade procedures, and increasing efficiency to meet the NTFC’s goals and objectives.
In his remarks, the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Mr Adewale Adeniyi, hailed the Federal Government for re-inaugurating the NTFC.
“The re-inauguration of the nation’s trade facilitation committee comes at no better time than now when global trade is facing various challenges and uncertainties.
“I believe that the NTFC will revitalise and strengthen Nigerian economic competitiveness on a global scale,” Adeniyi said.
He emphasised the NCS’s commitment to collaborating with all government agencies, the private sector, and development partners to execute the trade facilitation agreement.
Earlier, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Ambassador Nura Rimi welcomed the committee members, emphasising that the global economic landscape was continually changing, adding that Nigeria, like other countries, must strategically adapt.
Ambassador Rimi said that the re-inauguration represented the joint determination to push the frontiers of trade facilitation.
The NTFC established Trade Facilitation Centres/Desks in all 36 states of the federation, including the FCT. These facilities monitor trade flows and the movement of commodities and people.
The NTFC has 43 memberships from major relevant Ministries, Departments, and Agencies, within the public and private sectors of the economy.
The committee is chaired by the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, with the Comptroller-General of the NCS serving as vice chairperson.
