FEC ratifies Nigeria’s AfCFTA membership

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has ratified Nigeria’s membership of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

This is coming as the implementation of the agreement formally takes-off on January 1, 2021.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, disclosed this while briefing State House reporters on behalf of the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, after Wednesday’s virtual meeting of the council.

He said FEC ratified Nigeria’s membership of AfCFTA in compliance with the instruction directing parties to the agreement to ratify their memberships latest December 5, this year.

He recalled that Nigeria signed the agreement on July 7, 2019, in Niamey, Niger Republic, adding that with the ratification of its membership, Nigeria had beaten the ratification deadline.

Whereas the implementation of the agreement was initially scheduled to commence in July, this year, the plan was stalled by the spread of COVID-19.

Mohammed said: “The Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment presented a memo today (yesterday) asking the Federal Executive Council to ratify Nigeria’s membership of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement.

“You 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 (AU). The effective date ought to have been July 2020, but as a result of the pandemic, it was postponed to January 1st 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 ratification of the membership of the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement. It was ratified and as such, we beat the deadline of the 5th of December.

“Effectively, we hope that by 1st of January 2021, the agreement will come into force.”

The government’s spokesman also said FEC approved a memorandum presented by the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, for the approval of N470,263,037 for the procurement, installation, and commissioning of a fully dimensional aerodrome and approach simulator at Lagos Airport.

He said the contract will be executed by Messrs Intelligent Transportation System Limited which he described as an authorised representative of the original manufacturer, Messrs Teofex System of France.

Mohammed further stated: “The Minister of Aviation presented a memo in which he sought the approval of a contract for the procurement, installation, and commissioning of a fully dimensional aerodrome and approach simulator at Lagos Airport in favour of Messrs Intelligent Transportation System Limited who is an authorised representative of the original manufacturer, Messrs Teofex System of France for the sum of N470,263,037 with a completion period of six months.

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“The contract became necessary in view of the increase in the number of personnel who have been recruited and trained as air traffic controllers. It is important for us to ensure safety in all the 32 aerodromes of the country. That memo was also approved today.”

Also speaking, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Ali Isa Pantami, said FEC approved a memorandum for the creation of National Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center in Abuja as part of federal government’s efforts to boost entrepreneurship, create jobs and enhance skill acquisition.

According to him, the centre would be managed by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA in partnership with Massachusetts Institute of Technology with the completion period of three years.

Pantami said the centre would support institutions, enhance the skills of graduates and promote self-employment, adding that the Ministry of Communications would provide policy direction for the centre.

He also said the centre would provide a platform for training millions of Nigerians in information communications technology (ICT) and guarantee a productive future for citizens.

Pantami added: “I presented two memos. Number one is on the New National Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center here in Abuja and this is part of the efforts of the Federal Government of Nigeria in producing many entrepreneurs, particularly looking at the challenge of unemployment and unemployable citizens.

“We came up with this plan to establish a digital innovation and entrepreneurship centre where millions of our citizens are going to be trained as entrepreneurs, particularly in ICT so that they will be future potential employers rather than being employees.

“This is, somehow, in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. They have a programme they call Regional Entrepreneurship Accelerated Programme (REAP), where they support a country or an institution to produce many entrepreneurs in the area of their choice.

“So, our focus, looking at our mandate in the ministry, is on the development of ICT and this centre is going to be managed by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), while the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy is going to provide the policy direction for the centre and to supervise the implementation of the policy. It is going to be completed in three years.

“We came up with this plan to establish a digital innovation and entrepreneurship centre where millions of our citizens are going to be trained as entrepreneurs, particularly in ICT, so that they will be future potential employers rather than being employees. This is, somehow, in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, they have a programme they call Regional Entrepreneurship Accelerated Programme (REAP), where they support a country or an institution to produce many entrepreneurs in the area of their choice.”

The minister also said the council approved another memorandum for the initiation of a policy aimed at prioritising the affairs of internally displaced persons (IDPs).

According to him, the move is in furtherance of the initial approval of digitised identification for Nigerians, noted that the initial policy excluded persons living in IDP camps.

He said the new policy would assist the government in securing the data of IDPs, bearing in mind that obtaining data on their identities, numbers and locations would also assist the Federal Government in resettling them and offer them needed consideration in the country’s scheme of affairs.

He added: “The second memo is in relations with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC). As we all know that NIMC Act 2007 has made it mandatory that each citizen must require a national identity number, according to the Act’s Section 5; and Section 27 emphasises that it could be an offence not to acquire the number.

“Most of us here do not have the number, but they have at least a form of identification, an official one; either driver’s licence, passport for travelling and many more, but people in IDP camps do not have that. Usually, so we come up with a policy that will prioritise providing national identity to people living in IDPs. The policy has been entitled as National Policy for Digital Identification for internally displaced persons.

“This is a policy that will provide an up-to-date record of them so that the government will give them special consideration of resettling them and taking care of them. As we all know, no matter how strong you are, if you fail to take care of the weak ones, then automatically you are also a weak one. This is why we come up with the policy to prioritise them.”

In his remark at the briefing, the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said the council approved a memorandum presented by the ministry for the construction of Kano-Dawaki-Tofa-Gwarzo-Dariyo road in Kano at the cost of N62.7 billion with a contract duration of 24 months.

“The Ministry of Works and Housing presented one memorandum for the construction of Kano-Dawakin-Tofa-Gwarzo-Dariyo road in Kano. It was approved for N62.7 billion. It is to be executed in 24 months,” Fashola said.

Similarly, the Minister of Health, Dr Osage Ehanire, said the council approved the entrenchment of electronic medical record and management to be known as E-NHIS on behalf of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) that will put paid to the use of paper documentation in the hospitals.

He stated that the initiative would transform the health sector from its current paper record and management into a digital management status.

The minister who said the initiative would also serve as a platform for the management of payments and claims added that it would guarantee transparency and accountability in the country’s hospitals.

He said the contract would be executed by NigComSat under the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy in partnership with Galaxy Backbone.

Ehanire added: “The Ministry of Health presented a memo on behalf of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to introduce electronic medical records and management in a concept known as E-NHIS creating an electronic governance platform that will allow interoperability with all other stakeholders including particularly the state’s health insurance schemes, the health management organisations and the hospitals who offer services to patients.

“So, this will be a platform for managing payments and claims and also patients records to instil transparency and accountability. This is necessary because the basic health care provision fund as we know is going onstream and will include a large number of people being registered so that we move away from paper management to electronic management.”

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE