Ignore pressure to sign-on to AfCFTA agreement, MAN urges FG

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria
(MAN) has urged the Federal Government to ignore pressure from certain
quarters in the industry to urgently sign-on to the African Continental
Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

Dr Frank Jacobs, President of MAN, made the appeal at a news
conference on Wednesday in Lagos, tagged: “Matters arising on the
AfCFTA”.

AfCFTA is a trade agreement between African Union (AU) member states,
with the goal of creating a single market to ensure free movement and a
single currency union.

The AfCFTA was signed in Rwanda on March 21, 2018.

Signing the act does not yet establish the agreement but once all
documents are concluded and ratified by members, the free trade among AU
member states will formally exist.

Jacob urged the government to continue to withhold its sign-on to the
agreement until a credible outcome from an ongoing study initiated by
the government on the matter was received.

He said that Nigeria could become the key driver of improved volume
of intra-African trade if the rules of origin, countervailing measures,
dispute settlement, amongst other, were addressed.

He, however, reiterated that the only way to guarantee this positive
proposition was to ensure that the negotiating team was guided by a
credible and strategic study.

“In the light of recent developments, we considered it necessary to
intimate you (Federal Government) that an insignificant number of
non-real sector operators in the private sector are tactfully
recommending that Mr President signs the agreement.

“We (MAN) say they are essentially not at home with the technicalities of a trade agreement of this magnitude.

“The pronouncement of this group of actors is not representative of the views of the Organised Private Sector of Nigeria.

“We need to be certain that the agreement is in sync and not
constraining our extant economic policies, including the Nigeria
Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) and the Economic Recovery and Growth
Plan (ERGP),” he said.

The MAN chief reiterated that concerns on the implications of signing
the agreement, which had been raised since March, had till this moment
not been addressed.

“We are concerned about the impact of AfCFTA on the nation’s tax
structure, government revenue, the welfare of over 180 million Nigerians
and its impact on the industrialisation and economic development
aspirations of Nigeria.

“For the avoidance of doubt, we again request that Mr President
should not sign the AfCFTA agreement until the outcome of a credible
study so indicates.

“He should but graciously allow the nation’s team to resume
participation in the negotiation processes only to ensure that the
country is abreast of developments.

“This will certainly not jeopardise or constrain the reservation of
our assent, should we eventually decide that the agreement is definitely
not in our favour.

“It will only mean that, whilst keeping our eyes on the goings-on, we
can continue with our much needed and sovereign path to determine
whether we should sign-on or not,” he said.

 He lauded the clear demonstration of the commitment of Buhari and his
government to the growth of the manufacturing sector; its preservation
and the improvement of the wellbeing of the citizenry and the economy.