Earlier in the week, she met with President Muhammadu
Buhari, the Vice President, senior members of the government including the
Honourable Minister and Minister of State on Trade, Industry and Investment,
the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Honourable Minister of Finance,
the Minister of Women Affairs, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria,
business leaders and the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19.
In her meeting with Nigerian captains of industry on 16
March, the Director-General praised Nigeria’s efforts in fighting the COVID-19
pandemic and urged the country to build on this success. She emphasized the
importance of increasing vaccine production, ensuring equitable distribution
and making sure that medical goods such as vaccines can cross borders
seamlessly.
The Director-General underlined the role that trade can play
in helping Nigeria’s economy diversify and move from oil dependency towards a
modernized and low-carbon economy. Tapping into external demand can help pull
people out of low-productivity activities and into more tradable goods and
services, she said.
The DG emphasized Nigeria’s success in the hospitality,
retail, finance, entertainment and app development sectors as examples of how
to tap into the endless opportunities digital trade can offer to both small and
larger firms.
Connecting micro, small and medium-sized enterprises
(MSMEs), and especially women-owned businesses, to regional and international
market opportunities is key. More people will then benefit from trade, raising
living standards and creating jobs, she said. The WTO provides the underpinning
for open and predictable global trade.
In a meeting with women entrepreneurs and representatives of
MSMEs on 17 March, DG Okonjo-Iweala stressed the role of women and small
businesses in the economy and the need for additional support for their efforts
to thrive commercially.
The challenges facing women and MSMEs have been worsened by
the pandemic, she said. “Lowering the obstacles for businesses of all sizes,
and especially women-owned businesses, to participate in international trade
would help build back a better economy for everyone after this crisis.”
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