By Eyo Nsima

The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, LCCI, has noted that Africa has peculiar challenges in the global trade arena.

The LCCI, who noted this in its statement on the appointment of Nigeria’s Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, as the Director General of the World Trade Organisation, WTO, stated: “The continent is deeply integrated into the global supply chain and this underscores the low participation level of African economies in international trade. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Africa’s trade with the global community between 2015 and 2017 stood at an average of $760.1 billion, compared with Asia ($6.8 trn), America ($5.1 trn) and Europe ($4.1trn).

“These numbers indicate that Africa is not a major player in global trade. As such, it is very pertinent for African economies to build capacity within the continent in order to take advantage of the opportunities in global trade.

“Nigeria’s share in global trade is even more insignificant. Our export structure is still largely dependent on crude oil, which accounts for about 50% of government revenue and 90% of foreign exchange earnings.”