Nigeria seeks stronger African-Arab trade ties

Nigeria has urged African and Arab nations to expand trade cooperation with a stronger focus on agribusiness supply chains and industrial linkages. The call was made by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, at the Agribusiness Matchmaking Forum in Abuja ahead of the AATB (Arab Africa Trade Bridges) Board of Governors Meeting.

Edun said regional logistics and trade systems must be strengthened if African and Arab markets are to capture projected growth of more than 37 billion dollars in the next three years. He said the region cannot rely on raw commodity exports and must instead build capacity for processing, storage and movement of finished goods.

The minister said Nigeria’s expanding industrial base and the upcoming National Single Window reforms will support faster customs processes, reduced transaction time and improved transparency for cross-border trade. He noted that efficiency at ports, inland dry ports and road corridors will play a central role in helping producers reach regional and global markets.

“This is a moment to turn opportunity into action,” he said. “By working together, we can build stronger value chains, create jobs and support prosperity across our regions,” Edun said.

The forum highlighted the need for investment in cold chain networks, agribulk handling facilities, industrial parks and multimodal logistics systems to enable stable movement of food, fertiliser and manufactured products. Participants said improved connectivity between African and Arab regions could help anchor long-term growth in agribusiness and industry.