The Nigerian Government announced the inauguration of an inter-Ministerial Committee for the implementation of the signed joint statement between Nigeria and Ghana on trade Disputes.
The committee was inaugurated by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr Adeniyi Adebayo on Tuesday, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
This comes after a high-level bilateral meeting between Nigeria and representatives of the Ghanaian government led by that country’s Minister of trade held between May 31 and June 2.
They said the committee will be chaired by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Dr Evelyn Ngige, as President Muhammadu Buhari, approved the constitution of a delegation to Ghana to engage in and effectively find a lasting solution to the recurring dispute between Nigerian traders and their Ghanaian counterparts through a bilateral engagement.
“The dispute between the two countries worsened with the eviction of Nigerian traders in 2007 and the closing of over 300 Nigerian traders’ shops in 2018.
“You may recall that in 2018, the problem was aggravated by the country’s efforts to enforce the GIPC Trade Act which requires non- Ghanaian traders to have an investment portfolio of One Million Dollars to engage in any retail business in Ghana.
“During the visit, the Nigerian delegation held consultations with all the stakeholders from Nigeria in Ghana including professional groups and traders.
“The general concern especially from the traders was that the Ghanaian authorities have adopted discriminatory practices against Nigerians and other foreigners,” he said.
