Nigeria has joined the World Logistics Passport (WLP), a private sector-led initiative designed to enable the flow of global trade, unlock market access through the creation of new trade routes and provide economic efficiencies to members.
By joining the organisation, Nigeria has become a strategic hub in West Africa, and the 11th country in Africa to join the World Logistics Passport and fifth to join as a Hub. While the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), will serve as the coordinating partner.
Other African nations that are members of WLP include South Africa, Senegal, Morocco, Kenya, Ethiopia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Burkina Faso and Guinea.
With access to the WLP network, Nigerian traders will have the opportunity to enhance the connectivity and efficiency of their cargo operations. This in turn will open up trade routes allowing for faster, cheaper access to new markets particularly in Asia, Latin America and across Africa.
“We view West Africa as a long-term growth market, with Nigeria spearheading growth in the region. The WLP helps deliver economic growth and create jobs by boosting trade, principally by making a country’s products more competitive through more efficient supply chains. For Nigerian traders, this means discovering new opportunities through our network across the African continent and beyond,” says Ahmed bin Sulayem, group chairman/CEO of DP World.
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Rotimi Amaechi, Nigeria’s minister of transportation, commenting on the development, said joining the WLP is about bolstering global trade opportunities for Nigerian businesses and accelerating the country’s already fast paced growth.
“The WLP will provide benefits to businesses such as priority handling and faster clearance in order to help reduce supply chain costs and increase trade volumes,” he said.
He further said that the continued expansion of the WLP across Africa will help to deliver on the vision of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) by reducing end-to-end costs across the logistics chain in Africa, boosting intra-regional trade, and opening up competitive access to new international markets for African companies.
The CRFFN as the coordinating partner is the national regulator of the freight forwarding industry in Nigeria, promoting the growth and global competitiveness of the freight forwarding sector for the benefit of the Nigerian economy and the commercial success of its member companies.
Nigeria is the largest economy in Africa, with a diverse industrial base and rapidly expanding regional as well as global trade interests. In 2019, product exports from Nigeria totaled $63.8 billion with trade accounting for 25 percent of GDP.
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