The Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okojo Iweala says supporting trade for Micro Medium and Small Enterprises (MSMEs), especially for women entrepreneurs is meaningful.
She said this during a round table discussion with Women in Export Development Programme organized by the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) in Abuja.
Dr. Okonjo-Iweala stated that trade can help to improve economic outcomes for women by creating more and better jobs, raising wages and lowering cost.
“MSMEs are the back bone of Nigeria’s economy as they are in nearly all countries. More than 41million MSMEs account for 76% of the jobs in Nigeria and nearly 50% of GDP. When these enterprises thrive and grow and become productive, they go to the people.
“For MSMEs connecting to the international market, they can drive a vicious cycle of sales, economy of scale and learning.
“This leads to higher productivity and higher wages, but as we speak even though MSMEs account for 76% of jobs in the country, they only account for 7.6% of export so very much underrated in the export sector,” Dr. Okonjo-Iweala observed.
Dr Okojo-Iweala noted that although the COVID-19 pandemic was a major factor in economies all over the world, Nigeria must strive to overcome and strengthen its economy:
“We know that MSMEs have fewer financial resources than their larger competitors and with all the cost arising from the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, they are typically in a position where they have much less access to credit than before the pandemic.
“Bearing the obstacles for businesses of all sizes, especially women-owned businesses to participate in international trade will help build back a better economy for every one after this crisis.
“The positive news is that even before the pandemic, governments and donors had cashed into the untapped potential of women in global trade and began to respond.
“We’ve heard of the International Trade Center ITC and Shetrades initiatives; it’s really a favorite of mine in the short time I have been at the WTO because WTO is about rules, it’s about policies.
“The WTO’s purpose is to create jobs, improve income and support sustainability, meaning its suppose is to touch the life of the ordinary person.”
The WTO Boss assured the participants of support to grow their business to international standards:
“We will do our best at the WTO and ITC to partner with you more on this to make sure that the quality of what is being made is up to standard.
“We will also help you connect better to regional and international Market.
The Executive Director of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Mr Olusegun Awolowo, said clear area of focus for the organization was a drive to gain significant participation of women in non-oil exports, noting that women’s inclusion in trade could not be overemphasized.
“We created a Women in Export Division at NEPC, in all the Regional and Export Assistance offices to provide institutional support and advisory services for Women-Owned Businesses (WOBs) to increase participation of women in trade,” he said.
Amaka E. Nliam
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