The World Trade Organization (WTO) has launched a $1.2 million program aimed at enhancing the export standards of Nigeria’s sesame and cowpea products.
Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the WTO, made these remarks during the launch of seven trade support programs for Nigeria, a joint initiative of the WTO, World Bank, and ITC, held on Tuesday in Abuja.
She highlighted that the projects are designed to address instances of Nigeria’s products being rejected on the global market. The initiative commenced with the inauguration of the Standards Trade Development Facility (STDF), International Trade Centre (ITC), and the Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC).
Okonjo-Iweala emphasized that the project will facilitate international safety and quality certification for sesame and cowpeas in Nigeria. She underscored the potential of Nigeria’s agricultural sector to drive export diversification and job creation, lamenting that many of these opportunities remain untapped due to various barriers.
“We all know the story about Nigeria being a significant exporter of palm kernels, groundnuts, palm oil, cotton, and cocoa, but the country has since become a net importer of many of these goods.
“In fact, Nigeria has not only lost out in agricultural export markets; it is also a net food importer, spending about billions a year on goods, many of which we can also produce here.
“Nigeria used to be a formidable agricultural exporter. Up until the mid-1960s, the country’s share of world agricultural exports was more than one per cent.
“However, agricultural exports collapsed as the economy shifted towards petroleum exploitation, and by the mid-1980s, Nigeria’s world market share for agricultural products had dwindled to less than 0.1 percent,” she said.
The director-general noted that Nigeria’s untapped potential is partly attributable to trade-related issues on the supply side, which this project aims to address.
She highlighted Nigeria’s significant position as the world’s leading producer and consumer of cowpeas and the largest producer of sesame, with exports reaching the EU, Turkey, Japan, South Korea, and other Asian markets.
However, she pointed out that Nigerian exports of cowpeas and sesame have encountered increasing rejections in various destination markets due to failure to comply with international Standard Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) requirements.
The new project, according to Okonjo-Iweala, seeks to enhance the capacities of stakeholders throughout the sesame and cowpea value chains to better grasp market access requirements.
This initiative will focus on improving agricultural practices, including pesticide application, hygiene protocols, harvesting and post-harvest techniques, and food safety measures.
She said, “The project, which will kick off with an initial amount of 1.2 million dollars, of which nearly a million comes from STDF, will also be used to train local food safety advisers.
“This type of project is one I term a low-expenditure, high-impact project. The WTO is not a financing agency like the World Bank or IMF, but it has a wonderful secret that I find very attractive.
“It spends small sums of money to make a big impact. You cannot imagine how a million-dollar intervention can earn Nigeria hundreds of millions, if not billions, in increased agricultural exports.
“Supporting improved incomes for farmers, exporters, businesses, and others once agriculture producers and exporters follow the correct sanitary and phytosanitary standards.”
Meanwhile, the NEPC Executive Director, Nonye Ayeni, reiterated the challenges of rejection faced by Nigerian food exports, including sesame and cowpea.
She said the challenges were mainly due to poor quality, inefficient procedures and documentation, sanitary and phytosanitary issues, and improper packaging and labelling, among others.
She said, “A good number of these factors led to the decision of WTO/ITC to sponsor the STDF project, which will be backed by expected 30 per cent counterpart funding from NEPC.
“This project, STDF 845, will therefore enhance the quality and standard of sesame and cowpea through the institution of good Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary (SPS) conduct, Good Agricultural and Warehousing Practices (GAWP), packaging/labelling and excellent storage systems.
“All these are expected to forestall frequent contract cancellations and loss of business opportunities while allowing a significant increase in global acceptance of the items and the better quality of these products consumed locally.”
Ayeni further said the project was designed to last for three years with the objective of enhancing the integrity of cowpea and the sesame value chain in Nigeria.
“Therefore, the focus lies on improved practices that will enable Nigerian stakeholders to comply with the maximum residue levels of selected pesticides used in cowpeas and sesame and microbiological contamination with Salmonella (Sesame).
“Overall, it will improve the regulatory and control system as well as farming and processing practices applied for cowpea and sesame,” Ayeni stated.
Also, Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, commended the WTO and the ITC for the inauguration of the STDF programme.
She said this would complement President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s endeavours to leverage trade for economic expansion and unlock economic prospects for the Nigerian populace.
“We also heartily welcome today’s launch of the STDF, a global partnership that works to strengthen food safety, animal, and plant health capacity in developing countries.
“By encouraging the use of good practices to facilitate safe trade worldwide.
“This focus empowers us to put the best of Nigeria on the global market, boosting safety and security for our people and opening doors for our businesses,” she said.
Uzoka-Anite expressed confidence that the programmes would support the federal government’s efforts towards ensuring the safety, integrity, and marketability of Nigeria’s goods and services.