Expanding regional cooperation to increase Nigeria’s presence in ECOWAS market

Nigeria’s non-oil export receipts from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) fell by a whopping 56 percent at the end of 2015.

According to data compiled by Cobalt International Services that year, the non-oil export revenue of Africa’s biggest economy and oil producer to ECOWAS fell from $350.86 million in 2014 to $154.47 million in 2015.

Nigeria’s non-oil export to ECOWAS in 2013 was $375 million. But this fell to $350.8 million in 2014 and $154.47 million in 2015. There has not been significant improvement since then.

The total share of the ECOWAS market in Nigeria’s non-oil export is about 10 to 15 percent. For an ECOWAS market that has 350 million people and over $1.5 trillion gross domestic product, Nigeria’s export is just a scratch on the surface of the skin.

The country controls over 60 percent of ECOWAS market but its export to the region is relatively small.

Trade within ECOWAS is about 12 percent, which is not encouraging, experts say.

Against this backdrop, stakeholders have concluded plans to use the West Africa Trade and Investment Forum (WATIF) to achieve cooperation in the region and expand trade in goods and services.

At the maiden edition of WATIF held in Lagos last week, stakeholders said there was a need to increase intra-regional collaboration to grow major sectors of the ECOWAS economy, including manufacturing, ICT, agriculture, education and skills development in the region.

Michele Branco-Aiyegbusi, convener of WATIF, expressed optimism that integration and collaboration would boost the West African and the continent’s economy.

Branco-Aiyegbusi said WATIF 2018 themed, ‘Enhancing Collaboration for Regional Development and Economic Impact’ was coming on the heels of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement signed a few days before by 44 African countries in Kigali, Rwanda.

“Looking beyond WATIF 2018, what do we see? We see intra-regional collaboration; we see integration of technology, systems and policies that will facilitate ease of trade across borders; we see intra-regional and international investment opportunities from joint and consolidated efforts; we see purpose and resilience to return to our first place of pride and nationhood where there is less reliance on foreign-made goods and services, but rather promotion of goods, services and innovations that originated from us” she said.

She called on Nigeria to take the lead in the region and the continent, urging the country to be open.

“I believe that as a nation, we need to be open and collaborate with other African countries. I believe the fear has been exploitation, but we need to begin to bring people together and trust each other,” she said.

Idiat Oluranti Adebule, deputy governor of Lagos State, represented by Yetunde Odejaiye, permanent secretary of the Office of the Deputy Governor, said WATIF would help the region to enhance ideas that would promote the growth of nation’s economy and that of the West Africa sub region.

Akinola Olawore, president of the Nigeria British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC), said less than five percent of Nigeria’s exports went to ECOWAS, pointing out the need to do more export to the region and take advantage of opportunities therein.

Represented by the deputy president, Kayode Falowo, Olawore said in line with the vision of President Muhammadu Buhari to diversify the economy, the sectors discussed at WATIF— ICT, manufacturing, training, education, agriculture, among others—were apt and relevant to the development of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

ODINAKA ANUDU