AfCFTA: Nigeria to create policies to tackle road challenges, says Minister

Sen. Gbemisola Saraki, Minister of State, Transportation, on Wednesday, said that Nigeria was working on policies to tackle the many challenges faced by the road sub-sector.

Saraki disclosed this at a virtual National AfCFTA Implementation Engagement Series for the Road sub-sector of Transportation.

Represented by Mr Ibrahim Mohammed, a Deputy Director at the Federal Ministry of Transportation (FMoT), Saraki noted that the road network was easily accessible and in reality remained 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 has established a vehicle transit system, under a public-private-partnership arrangement, across 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, Borno 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 regional integration that would boost the road sub-sector and aid the country in benefiting from the objectives of AfCFTA.

He urged the country to address some issues that could impact it in this endeavour, such as: governance, finance, different vehicle standards, permissible limit for vehicle axle load and standard types of weigh bridges used across the road network.

Uruaka identified the way forward to include harmonization of regulatory instruments and regime, adoption of a 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 were to be found in enhanced contribution to the Gross Domestic Product, investment prospects, employment, reduced costs in many economic sectors and creating a gateway to developing other sectors.

Earlier, Mr Francis Anatogu, Secretary, AfCFTA National Action Committee, in his address of welcome, noted that the country needed to create the key imperatives to adopt so as to succeed with AfCFTA.

He said that Nigeria needed to produce what it would export, adding that a nation wide campaign had been embarked upon to sensitise 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.

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“We need to get the road sub-sector right, improve on infrastructure, reduce the focus on oil, by expanding into agriculture and these will ensure we gain from the objectives of AfCFTA,” he said.

Anatogu noted that AfCFTA would catalyse the age-long ambition of Nigeria to have a diversified economy and be export-based, for Africa and beyond.