ABUJA - The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) has expressed its willingness to boost trade partnership within West Africa.
Mr Felix Ugbor, the Director, UNIDO Vienna office, stated the agency’s position at the opening ceremony of the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Investment Promotion Agencies of West African States in Abuja.
“We are working on a project that will boost trade relationship within the West Africa sub-region,” he said.
Ugbor said the project in Africa would focus on three major areas, including investors’ survey, capacity building, self contracting and capacity exchange.
He explained further that various data would be collected from 20 countries, including Nigeria, for designing policies.
He said that capacity building for various companies would grow small and medium scale enterprises and urged all African investors to take interest in the project.
Also, Mr Peter Oluonye, the representative of ECOWAS, said an effective public sector was necessary to tap private initiatives.
He said that ECOWAS envisaged a private sector, which would be at the forefront of economic growth.
Oluonye suggested that policy makers should ensure that their collaboration with the public sector addressed issues of productivity, employment generation and poverty reduction.
Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, the Chairman, African Business Roundtable, said the prospect of African Community, as envisaged in the AU Charter, depended on its economy.
Represented by Mr Samuel Ayodele, Tukur said it was imperative for African countries to cooperate in the areas of trade, investment and economic development.
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