The federal government on Monday in Abuja unveiled the Cross-Border Digital Payments and Identity in Nigeria under the African Continental Free Trade Area reports.

The programme was unveiled by the deputy chief of staff to the president, Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia, in Abuja. Mr Hadejia urged stakeholders to unlock trade opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises to access the $3.5 trillion AfCFTA market.

Mr Hadejia described the research as both timely and strategic, noting the strong coordination by the Office of the Vice-President and the leadership of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

Mr Hadejia revealed that the cross-border payments report followed earlier milestones, including the development and launch of Nigeria’s Digital Trade Strategy and a capacity-building programme for subnational leaders.

The official noted that Nigeria was increasingly assuming a leading role in shaping the digital trade agenda across Africa. According to him, the country remains at the forefront of AfCFTA implementation.

Mr Hadejia expressed the federal government’s commitment to strengthening critical infrastructure, regulatory frameworks, and partnerships to ensure Nigeria was not only ready for digital trade but also continued to lead.

“I appreciate the efforts of all stakeholders and urge us to move AfCFTA beyond a continental agreement to a $3.5 trillion trade juggernaut. This will reinvigorate our industries, unlock intra-African trade, and domesticate African prosperity,” Mr Hadejia added.

Mr Hadejia said that intra-African trade would be driven not only by large corporations but by small businesses empowered through digital trade and e-commerce. He noted that the issues of trust, identity, and logistics highlighted in the report must be addressed.

Special adviser to the president on job creation and MSMEs, Temitola Adekunle-Johnson, said the report would significantly strengthen the MSME ecosystem. He explained that cross-border payments in Nigeria and across Africa had historically been largely informal and inefficient.

Mr Adekunle-Johnson, however, noted that the emergence of the Bank Verification Number and the National Identification Number systems was changing the landscape. He expressed optimism that the report’s findings and recommendations would enable Nigerian SMEs to achieve seamless access to continental markets.

Special assistant to the president on project support, Shuda Ahmed, commended ODI Global for leading the research underpinning the report. She noted that without seamless and affordable cross-border payment systems, MSMEs across the continent would be unable to scale beyond their domestic markets. 

(NAN)