The federal government has assured Ministers of member countries of the Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS), on its support for regional common tariff and customs union towards trade liberalisation, industrialisation and integration.
The minister of Finance, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, stated this at the 4th ECOWAS Finance Ministers’ Meeting in Abuja, with the theme: ‘Information Exchange and Cooperation Amongst Customs Administrations as a Concerted Response to Obstacles to the Free Movement of Goods, Security Challenges and the Resurgence of Illicit Trafficking’.
She also noted that the move to establish the ECOWAS Customs Union remains a pertinent issue that should be vigorously pursued in order to facilitate free trade and industrialisation towards shared prosperity for people in the sub-region.
A statement by the Special Adviser to the minister of Finance (Media and Communications), Mr Paul Ella Abechi, said the minister made it clear that Nigeria will continue to be on the vanguard to champion and foster regional economic development and trade facilitation in the sub-region.
According to her, some of the issues for consideration at the conference include the matters for review and validation of Draft Supplementary Act on Community Rules of Origin and Procedures applicable to goods originating in the ECOWAS; the Draft Regulation on the Harmonisation of Customs Duty Reliefs; the Draft Directive on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters; the Draft Regulations on the Change of Category of Products in the ECOWAS CET; the Draft Directive on the System of Track and Trace and the Verification of the Taxation of Tobacco Products Manufactured or Imported in the Member States of the Community and a couple of other equally important fiscal matters.
