AFCTA will go on without Nigeria, says Obasanjo

A former President of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo,   said  that the African free continental trade area (AFCTA) agreement will not be hindered by Nigeria’s reluctance to sign up to the process.

Chief Obasanjo made the remark in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, during the opening session of the stakeholders’ dialogue on continental trade and strengthening the implementation of the AFCTA.

The dialogue was organised by the African union commission (AUC) and the coalition for dialogue on Africa (CODA).

The former president was reacting to concerns raised by one of the discussants at the event, on the need for stakeholders to look into the implications of AFCTA without Nigeria, the continent’s biggest economy.

Chief Obasanjo, who recalled that Nigeria took over the processes leading to the AFCTA agreement from Egypt, wondered why it suddenly halted signing and was not even participating at the session.

According to him, Nigeria should resolve its domestic intrigues and not bring such to the African union table.

Reports say  that Nigeria, Benin and Eritrea are the only countries yet to sign the AFCTA agreement.