Moses Uwagbale
Nigeria is working on policies to tackle the challenges that face the road sub-sector of transportation, Ms Gbemisola Saraki, Minister of State for Transportation says.
At the virtual National AfCFTA Implementation Engagement Series for the Road sub-sector of Transportation in Abuja, Saraki who was represented by Mr Ibrahim Mohammed, a Deputy Director in the Ministry of Transportation (FMOT), said the road network easily accessible was the most widely used for movement of people, trade and services.
“To ensure we reap benefits of AfCFTA through the road, the federal ministry of transportation have established a vehicle transit under the public private partnership arrangement which will be across the nation: Ogun, Anambra, Kaduna, Enugu, Edo and others.
“The borders and state highways will be regulated, facilitate the creation of trade offices in Oyo, Katsina, Ogun, Boronu and others and also some of the road works are completed or at an advanced stage,” she said.
Also, Mr Anthony Uruaka, Principal Highway Engineer, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, called for a regional integration that would boost the road sub-sector and aid the country in benefiting the objectives of AfCFTA.
He urged the country to address some issues that would affect it such as governance, finance, different vehicle standards, permissible limit for vehicle axle load, standard types of weight bridges used across the road network.
Uruaka pointed out some way forward as: harmonizing of regulatory instrument and regime, adopt permit system, standard operating procedure for law enforcement, capacity building especially in the public institution and others.
He added that the opportunities for the country are: enhance contribution to the gross domestic product, investment prospect, employment, reduce cost in many economic sector and gateway to developing other sector.
Earlier, Mr Francis Anatogu, Secretary, AfCFTA National Action Committee in his welcome address noted that as far as trade goes, there must be key imperative the country needed to adopt to succeed with AfCFTA.
He said that Nigeria needed to produce what it would export, adding that they had embarked on a nationwide campaign to sensitive states on the benefits of AfCFTA.
“Each state should identify either products or services that they will project, the country cannot rely just on removal of tariff, we need to be far more competitive and this is where the road sub-sector comes in.
“We need to get the road sub-sector right, improve on infrastructure, reduce the focus on oil by expanding to agriculture and these will ensure we gain the objectives of AfCFTA,” he said.
Anatogu noted that AfCFTA would catalyse the age long ambition for Nigeria to diversify on export base not just for Africa but beyond Africa.
