Tony Okafor
CfCTA: Chris Azubugu calls for improved infrastructures



A member of the House of Representatives for Nnewi North/South/Ekwusigo in Anambra State, Engineer Chris Azubogu, has called for improved infrastructure in order for Nigeria to benefit from the African Continental Free Trade Area(AfCFTA).

He said AfCFTA promised benefit for Nigeria in the manufacturing sector if "we can improve Infrastructures such as power supply, transportation system and so on".

Azubogu stated this while interacting with some Anambra indigenes that visited him at his Umunnealam Umudim, Nnewi country home on January 1st, 2021.

He said "With this African Continental Free Trade Area( AfCFTA) coming into force from January 1st, 2021, for Intra-African trade, 90 per cent of all goods will become tariff free for the countries that have deposited their instruments of AfCFTA ratification. With all the African countries, except Eritrea, participating, the AfCFTA would have the largest number of member countries in any trade deal since the formation of the World Trade Organization".

Azubogu added,' We must speed up investment on targeted infrastructural facilities that will crash cost of local Manufacturing and movement of goods in order to compete favourably with the coming of AfCFTA.

"The AfCFTA trade Agreement present a market consisting of 1.2 billion people and a combined GDP of $3 trillion with 54 of the 55 African Union member states and we have to do everything possible to crash the cost of Manufacturing and Distribution as a people in Nigeria in order to benefit from this new deal"

"This is not a time for celebration, but a time to put up framework that will make our country's economy to benefit from this 1.2 billion market. We have to prioritize Industrial Development Infrastructure.

"We must put human and physical Infrastructure that will turn our huge population as a productive assets in order to benefit from AfCFTA. We have to put framework that will protect jobs and put us in a strategic position as a country that will benefit from AfCFTA deal and not to be a dumping ground with the coming of AfCFTA. We have also to prioritize skill manpower development as a Country.

"Shying away from holistic pursuit of Gas Infrastructural Development for Manufacturing Clusters as a priority Policy across our country, will continue to hurt the nation's economy especially with the coming of AfCFTA." Azubogu worried.


"With AfCFTA, intra-African trade that is within 15 to 18 per cent of overall exports, is projected to increase."

Azubogu said Anambra State must key into this 1.2 billion market in order for the state to benefit from AfCFTA new trade deal.
Chris Azubugu is a governorship aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party in the November, 2021 poll in Anambra State. His people call him Mr Projects because of the several projects he had attracted across the state as a Federal Lawmaker.