Africa’s share of global trade has remained stagnant at approximately 3% or less, but there are opportunities for improvement.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) director-general, made this claim in a special interview with Channels Television.
Okonjo-Iweala emphasised Nigeria’s ability to improve the calibre of its agricultural exports, especially sesame and cowpea, which have the potential to bring in billions of dollars and greatly increase the nation’s income.
In order to take full advantage of these prospects, the WTO chief highlighted the organization’s dedication to collaborating with Nigeria and Africa.
She said, “Africa’s share of world trade has stagnated at about 3% or less for many years but there are opportunities to improve that including in Nigeria. Let me start with Nigeria, Nigeria does have many opportunities to diversify its economy and its revenue source.
“And we are here at the WTO because there is an opportunity to help the country increase its export of agriculture exports. And the honourable Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment asked for help; how can we improve the quality of agriculture product like cowpeas and sesame where we stand to gain no millions but billions of dollars if we can meet the quality and certification standards by those who demand them from us?”
According to Okonjo-Iweala, Nigerian farmers can increase their income from farm products by threefold with the help of WTO training.