By Mariatou Ngum
The Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration, and Employment (MoTIE) last week had a productive meeting with Mr. Muhammed Njie, Managing Director of the National Food Security Processing and Marketing Corporation (NFSPMC) on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the Guided Trade Initiative (GTI), designed to enhance the entry of Gambian products into the wider AfCFTA market.
This initiative promises to provide valuable support and guidance to businesses, increasing market access and promoting the export of our local products.
Speaking during the meeting, Mr. Abdoulie Jammeh, the Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Trade, described the National Food Security Processing and Marketing Corporation as an important government institution, being the main exporter of end products such as groundnut. He informed Mr. Njie that under the AfCFTA Guided Trade Initiative, members are required to identify companies that can serve as aggregators, and that The Gambia as a country selected NFSPMC to be one of them.
He said since 2022, when the initiative was launched, a large number of countries have expressed interest to participate. “It started with 7 and now we have 39 countries that have expressed interest to participate under the GTI and Gambia is one of the countries,” he added.
Ousman Bojang, the Director of Trade, said they want the NFSPMC to be a player in the AfCFTA because they believed that the NFSPMC have the experience of exporting and also the capacity to serve as an aggregator.
Muhammed Njie, the Managing Director of NFSPMC expressed delight at receiving the officials from the Ministry of Trade. He affirmed that they do export to the neighboring countries products such as crude oil, groundnut cakes, among others; hence believes that their participation in the AfCFTA will facilitate trade in the sub-region.
As the national institution that deals with trade aggregation, MD Njie mentioned the capacity of the corporation and its readiness to support MSMEs participation in the AfCFTA and the GTI.
Hence, the meeting with the NFSPMC is part of the Ministry’s public sensitization; particularly the business community on the significance and benefits of the AfCFTA.
The AfCFTA is one of the flagship projects of the Agenda 2063 of the African Union that aimed at integrating Africa’s markets in line with the objectives and principles highlighted in the Abuja Treaty establishing the African Economic Community.
The main objective is to expand and accelerate intra-African trade and increase trade among African countries through the elimination of tariff and non-tariff barriers as well as harmonisation of standards, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, custom cooperation and border procedures and other trade related regulations. The realisation of the AfCFTA objectives also requires capacity building and investments in the productive sectors, services and trade related infrastructure.
