Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) that is expected to transform economic ties between the two nations.
Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, disclosed this in a statement she made available to the media.
She said the agreement prioritises market access for Nigerian goods and services, facilitates quality investment inflows, and advances Nigeria’s national economic diversification under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The agreement, she said, holds a lot of promise for Nigerian businesses, professionals, and workers.
According to the Minister, the UAE will eliminate tariffs on over 7,000 products. “Immediately, our agricultural and industrial products – fish and seafood, oil seeds, cereals, cotton, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and more- will enter the UAE market duty-free,” she said.
“Over the next three to five years, the UAE will eliminate tariffs on Nigerian machinery, vehicles, electrical equipment, apparel, and furniture. Nigerian industrial exports now have a clear and competitive pathway into one of the world’s most dynamic trading hubs.”
She informed that Nigerian business visitors can enter the UAE for up to 90 days in 12 months to explore trade and investment opportunities, while intra-corporate transferees, managers, executives, and specialists can relocate with their corporate entities for renewable three-year periods.
“For Nigeria’s investment climate, this agreement addresses longstanding impediments to foreign direct investment,” she said, adding, “UAE investors now have clarity and confidence to invest in Nigeria’s productive sectors. This will support Nigeria’s industrialisation agenda, enhance transport and logistics connectivity, and contribute to the creation of quality jobs for our youthful population.”
She said under the agreement, Nigeria will eliminate tariffs on around 6,000 products. “Tariffs on around 60 per cent of these products will be eliminated immediately, with the remainder phased over five years,” she clarified. “These imports are concentrated in industrial inputs, capital goods, and machinery that will strengthen Nigeria’s productive capacity.”
She, however, noted that Nigeria’s Import Prohibition List remains in effect.
On trade in services, she said Nigeria’s commitments cover 99 specific services across 10 sectors, including business services, communication, transport, financial services, construction, distribution, health, environment, recreational/sporting, and tourism.
“This CEPA is a strategic instrument for economic transformation. With significant market access secured for value-added and industrial goods, this agreement incentivises Nigerian manufacturers to scale production for export,” she said, adding that the CEPA also positions Nigeria as the gateway for international investors seeking access to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and its 1.4 billion people.
She said there would be a swift implementation of the agreement, promising that the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, working with key MDAs such as the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), alongside FMITI agencies such as the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), and the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) and the Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON) will ensure that Nigerian businesses, and the investors, have the information, support, and facilitation they need to take swift and full advantage of the agreement in line with Mr. President’s “Nigeria First” directive.
