Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, has called on deliberate policy reforms to deepen access to finance for small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) in order to enable Nigeria to fully benefit from the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS).
On behalf of his boss, Barr. Ifeanyi Ossai, at a one-day ETLS sensitisation workshop on the subject “Increasing Intra-Regional Trade through ETLS” organized at the International Conference Centre, Enugu, Mbah tagged the scheme a vital opportunity to boost trade in the West African subregion.
Ossai commended the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the ECOWAS National Unit for organizing the programme in Enugu and noted that the good trading culture of the Southeast region places it well to gain significant advantage from the programme.
“The ETLS is an opportunity to increase trade not only for us but also for other nations in our region,” he told a press briefing. He, however, issued a warning that even though regional integration presents new opportunities for trade, Nigeria should also learn from previous experiences where globalisation undermined local industries.
The deputy governor urged the Federal Government to establish guidelines that protect local producers during the implementation of trade agreements. He also urged de-centralizing approval powers within development financing institutions such as the Bank of Industry, Bank of Agriculture, and NEXIM Bank, so that entrepreneurs can access credit more rapidly.
Applications should not wait to be approved in Abuja for a trader in an SME in Ogbete Market or Coal Camp, he said. “Development finance should be collateral-free and led by business potential.”
Ossai also proposed the establishment of an ECOWAS Commercial Bank to fund regional infrastructure and SMEs, observing that manufacturing cannot thrive unless there is strong financial and infrastructural support.
In her address, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, described the ETLS as a strategic building block of West African integration that is behind the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
“The ETLS promotes the free flow of goods and services and ensures that our local entrepreneurs have access to regional opportunity,” she went on, highlighting Enugu’s leadership in drive and innovation.
Also speaking to the meeting, Ambassador Olawale Emmanuel Awe, Director of the ECOWAS National Unit, explained that the ETLS allows products manufactured in any ECOWAS member state to be sold within the ECOWAS region duty-free provided that they are actually produced locally.
He explained, “The ETLS is for producers, entrepreneurs, and MSMEs whose goods can compete in West Africa. Once registered, Nigerian producers can export their goods to 12 ECOWAS countries duty-free.”
Awe urged business leaders in the Southeast to tap into the scheme, explaining that proper registration and compliance with production standards is the key to availing eligibility.
We are doing this to enlighten our businessmen to utilize this opportunity. When you don’t pay customs duties, you might as well sell within Nigeria,” he said.
