Nigeria has ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), making it the 107th member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to do so and meaning that only three more ratifications are needed to bring the TFA into force.
The Agreement, which will apply to all 164 WTO members, is expected to change customs procedures in a way that will help small businesses access new export opportunities.
It has two significant sections, with section I containing provisions for expediting the movement, release and clearance of goods, including goods in transit. It clarifies and improves the relevant articles (V, VIII and X) of the 1994 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and sets out provisions for customs co-operation.
Section II concerns special and differential treatment (SDT) provisions allowing developing and least developed countries (LDCs) to determine when they will implement individual provisions of the Agreement.
WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo welcomed Nigeria’s initiative but used the occasion of a speech to the World Economic Forum in Davos to warn of a potential rise in protectionism around the globe.
His speech came on the same day as Donald Trump was sworn in as President of the USA with an address in which he made plain his trade policy for the next four years.
He said: “Every decision on trade, on taxes, on immigration, on foreign affairs, will be made to benefit American workers and American families. We must protect our borders from the ravages of other countries making our products, stealing our companies, and destroying our jobs. Protection will lead to great prosperity and strength.”
