The Nigerian government has ratified its membership of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the country’s Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said.
The Minister told journalists on Wednesday in Abuja that the decision was taken at the weekly meeting of the Federal Executive Council presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He explained that with the ratification, Nigeria has beaten the December 5, 2020 deadline set for all countries to ratify their membership.
“The Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment presented a memo today (Wednesday) asking the Federal Executive Council to ratify Nigeria’s membership of the African Continental Free Trade Area.
“You remember that on July 7, 2019, Nigeria signed the AfCFTA agreement in Niamey during the 12th Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union.
“The effective date ought to have been July 2020 but as a result of the pandemic, it was postponed to January 1, 2021 and all member states were given up to December 5 to ratify the agreement.
“That is precisely what Nigeria did today. The Federal Executive Council approved the ratification of the membership of the African Continental Free Trade Area. It was ratified and as such, we beat the deadline of December 5. Effectively, we hope that by January 1, 2021, the agreement will come into force,” local media reports quoted the Minister as saying on Thursday.
The AfCFTA was created by 54 of the 55 African Union (AU) member states.
The main objectives of the AfCFTA are to create a single continental market for goods and services, with free movement of business persons and investments, and thus pave the way for accelerating the establishment of the Customs Union.
GIK/APA