Traders highlight challenges to regional trade

.Seek Harmonization Of Tax By ECOWAS Members 
Traders in the West African corridor have highlighted various challenges affecting trade among the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) members.
 
The traders under the aegis of West African Association for Cross-border Trade in Agro-forestry-pastoral and Fisheries Products (WACTAF), said poor infrastructure, such as poor electricity supply, bad roads, cost of fueling, kidnapping and banditry are seriously affecting trade on the Nigerian corridor.
 
The group however stated that multi-transit levies, overloading of trucks, de-harmonization of taxes are affecting trade the ECOWAS region generally.
 

Alasoadua also stressed the need for establishment of export cooperative village and domestic cooperative village to cater for the challenges of small and medium scale importers and exporters.
 
“Government will need to encourage from the local level or grass root and establish domestic cooperative village by using the platform of co-operative society to produce food for local consumptions and create for export. 

“More so, identify the type of product needed for export. These export and domestic cooperative villages can be used for source of raw materials for locals” he stated.   
 
He noted that export opportunities in the areas of agriculture, commodities, manufacturing and services within the northern region were yet to be adequately harnessed, hence deliberate efforts by stakeholders to exploit the potentials should be encouraged. 
 

The WACTAF president noted that an aggressive promotion and development of non-oil export is the only panacea to the sustainability of the Nigerian economy.
 
According to him, the non-oil export promotion is an economic task that should no longer attract mere lip service, saying specific programmes, assigning definite responsibilities to the banks, are now overdue.

He also call for creation of more border markets, saying this will facilitate trade among ECOWAS member states; eliminate language barrier and security harassment along the border, where traders will expose their products according to international regulation.