Okonjo-Iweala on Nigeria’s AfCFTA Playbook

The Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has expressed confidence that Nigeria can take the lead in driving Africa’s new trade era—provided it addresses costly logistics, strengthens payment systems, and prioritizes value-added production.

Speaking at the WTO Public Forum in Geneva, Switzerland, Okonjo-Iweala stressed that Nigeria and other African nations must accelerate the rollout of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and invest in robust infrastructure to unlock billions of dollars in opportunities across manufacturing, services, and the digital economy.

According to her, while the AfCFTA is a milestone achievement, Africa’s intra-continental trade still lags at just 15–20 percent, compared with the European Union’s 60 percent. “We need to quicken implementation so African countries can trade more with one another,” she said.

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She highlighted Lesotho as an example, noting that the small nation exports around $200 million worth of textiles annually to the United States — roughly 10 percent of its GDP — yet Africa imports $7 billion worth of similar products from outside the continent. “Why not absorb these goods within Africa? To grow intra-African trade, we must have seamless payment systems — with initiatives like Afreximbank already working on solutions — as well as better infrastructure and reduced trade costs. It should never be faster to ship goods from China to Lagos than from Cape Town to Lagos,” she emphasized.

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Okonjo-Iweala further noted that Africa stands at a strategic advantage with critical minerals, energy resources, and emerging supply chains, alongside fast-growing opportunities in services and digital trade. “If we invest in connectivity and fully implement AfCFTA, the gains will be enormous,” she said.

The former Nigerian finance minister also warned that pessimistic narratives about globalization and trade could obscure the real progress being made through multilateral cooperation.