The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the sum of N62.7 billion for the construction of the Dawakin Tofa road in Kano State.
The council approved the funds on Wednesday, noting that the project is expected to last a duration of 24 months.
Meanwhile, FEC also approved the ratification of Nigeria’s membership of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area from the Ministry of Industry Trade and Investment.
“The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, presented a memo today asking the Chief Executive Council to ratify the membership of the African Continental Free Trade Area,” the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed said.
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“You will remember that on the 7th of July 2019, Nigeria signed the AFCTA agreement in Niamey during the 12th extraordinary session of the assembly of the African Union.
“The effective date ought to have been July 2020 but as a result of the pandemic, it was postponed to the 1st of January 2021 and all member states were given up to the 5th of December to ratify the agreement. That is precisely what Nigeria did today. The Federal executive council approved our membership of the AFCTA and as such, we have beat the deadline.”
Below are some facts to note about the agreement.
1. The agreement was brokered by the African Union (AU) and as of April 2019, 22 countries had ratified the agreement – the exact number of states needed to allow the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), come into effect.
2. It has a goal of creating a single market – the African Continental Free Trade Area, followed by free movement and a single-currency union.
3. The free-trade area is the largest in the world in terms of participating countries since the formation of the World Trade Organization.
4. Member states are required to remove tariffs from 90% of goods, allowing free access to commodities, goods, and services across the continent.
5. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa estimates that the agreement will boost intra-African trade by 52 per cent by 2022.
