Nigeria, Niger cement bilateral economic ties

NIGERIA and Niger Re­public are currently working toward cementing all bilateral economic relations to boost the fortunes of both nations and the West African sub-region. To this end, the Nigeria- Niger Joint Commission (NNJC) said it is seeking to promote transit trade for greater economic integration of landlocked countries with­in Africa into international trade. Head of Service of the Fed­eration, Danladi Kifasi, stated this in Abuja at the weekend at a sensitisation workshop on facilitation of transit trade in Nigeria. According to him, Nige­ria as a major player in the West African shipping busi­ness will continue to fulfill all relevant international and sub-regional obligations un­der various instruments to address the peculiar needs of landlocked countries. “Following the several reforms that culminated in concessioning of Nigerian seaports to private operators and the resultant increase in efficiency, our Ministry of Transport has been champi­oning bilateral negotiations through the NNJC to encour­age Niger’s economic opera­tors to return to Nigerian ports for the shipment of Niger bound goods. “The peculiarity of transit trade appears shrouded in se­crecy that many people, in­cluding regulatory agencies, often lack the needed under­standing to properly situate the transactions and proce­dures involved in handling the trade. Officials of such agencies, therefore, inadver­tently hinder the trade instead of facilitating it. In view of this, the committee experts and NNJC saw the need for a sensitization workshop to en­lighten and educate all stake­holders on this important area of our international trade”, he explained. The Head of Service de­scribed the event as the fruit of a meeting held between former President Goodluck Jonathan and his Niger Re­public counterpart on October 18, 2013, in Niamey where both nations agreed to col­laborate to deepen trade links and address the challenges of Niger economic operators re­lating to transiting their goods through Nigerian ports. Also speaking at the event, the Secretary General of NNJC, Ambassador Abdul­jalil Abubakar Sulaimon, said Nigeria and Niger have signed cooperation agree­ments including the estab­lishment of Nigeria-Niger Chamber of Commerce head­quartered in Kano, Nigeria. “These agreements have helped both nations economi­cally. The implementation of the ongoing cross-border cooperation initiative on trade and food security in the Kano-Katsina-Maradi corri­dor, among other initiatives,” he said.

Source - The Sun