AU... Buhari seeks African single market to tackle unemployment, poverty.

AU... Buhari seeks African single market to tackle unemployment, poverty President Muhammadu Buhari Olalekan Adetayo , Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari Monday called for the speedy establishment of a single , unified market in Africa. This , he said , would increase trade , create more jobs and reduce poverty . According to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity , Garba Shehu, the President made the call while presenting Nigeria ’ s position in favour of the report on the establishment of a Continental Free Trade Area and related issues presented by President Mahamadou Issoufou of Niger Republic , during the 30 th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Addis Ababa , Ethiopia. “It is Nigeria ’ s position that as African leaders and principal architects of our union , we must now speed up action to conclude the negotiations and establish the CFTA , ” the President . Noting that the continent has missed the timeline set by the African Union in January 2012 to establish the CFTA in 2017 , Buhari said African leaders still had the opportunity to set it up by March 2018. Justifying Nigeria ’ s vote for the CFTA , the President said , “In a rapidly changing global economy , with much uncertainty , we believe that the establishment of a CFTA would provide Africa with tremendous opportunity to achieve significant growth driven by intra- African trade . ” According to him , while the stakes in setting up CFTA are no doubt very high , the benefits are wide-ranging and significant . “The primary objective is economic namely , for trade in goods and services on the continent . “A single , unified market would lead to a comprehensive and mutually beneficial trade agreement amongst African Union Member States . “If we integrate Africa’ s market for trade in goods and services , we will not only double intra- African trade but also negotiate with other regions or continents on trade matters , ” he said . Buhari argued further that , “If we increase our trade , we grow faster , create more jobs and reduce poverty . Thus, with CFTA , our continent will be more integrated , united and prosperous . ” He noted that the “CFTA will carry significant welfare gains associated with increased production, consumption and revenue . It will generate more economic growth , enhance efficiency and support enterprise and innovation. ” The Nigerian leader urged his African colleagues to also look beyond the economic benefits of the CFTA , stressing that it will “be another step in uniting Africa and consolidating the architecture of the African Union . ”