Trade being a vehicle of globalisation and an enhancer of competitiveness, making competitiveness synonymous with the measure of the performance or the growth potentials of a nation’s economy.

In the quest to build a robust trade ecosystem, the Trade Services Department of the WTC Abuja hosted the maiden edition of its webinar series on Tuesday, 14^th February, 2023 with the theme “NIGERIA TRADE COMPETITIVENESS: IMPERATIVE FOR GROWTH”.

Present at the virtual event was the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Niyi Adebayo and highly resourceful panelists who shared their knowledge and expertise as it affects the economic growth and development of Nigeria.

The Minister, in his keynote address discussed key pillars of trade competitiveness - Energy and Climate Change; Infrastructure; Food Security and Safety; and Competition Enablers. In his remarks on energy and climate change, the Minister said, “A key component of trade competitiveness is the cost of production and energy cost and availability is pivotal to this conversation. Energy use is crucial for almost every conceivable aspect of development. Nigeria has historically faced challenges in its Energy Sector which greatly affects the business environment; our unmet energy needs are significant and we expect that future demand will be even greater due to our expanding population and urbanization”.

He also explained that, “Nigeria Energy Transition Plan has been introduced and designed to tackle the dual crises of energy, poverty and climate change and deliver SDG7 by 2030 and net-zero emissions by 2060. The long-term sustainable solution is pursued with the focus on value addition and productivity in the economy. This is well articulated in our medium-term economic plan 2021 – 2025”.

Earlier, in his remarks, Mr. Vinay Mahtani, Group Managing Director of Churchgate Group/WTC Abuja explained, “the webinar served a critical role in shaping the future of our national economy, offering a platform for us to collectively brainstorm and implement strategies for a more competitive and sustainable future”.

This was an interactive session, attended by stakeholders in diverse industries, members of academia, etc. to emphasize the need for building a strong market position for Nigeria and outline recommendations that are imperative to unlock the constraints to growth, development, and expansion of Nigeria’s Trade competitiveness.