Nigeria and the Republic of Benin have officially begun implementing a new economic cooperation agreement aimed at strengthening bilateral trade and advancing regional integration.
The agreement follows a two-day high-level meeting between officials from both countries to finalize the framework for execution, according to Nairametrics.
In a statement released by Dr. Magnus Eze, Special Assistant on Communication and New Media to Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Amb. Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, the agreement is based on commitments made at the West Africa Economic Summit (WAES) held in Abuja in June 2025.
The pact focuses on key areas such as trade in services, customs procedures, trade facilitation, transport infrastructure, and private sector collaboration.
Amb. Odumegwu-Ojukwu described the agreement as aligned with the broader objectives of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
She praised President Bola Tinubu’s leadership in convening the regional summit that led to the initiative.
She also noted that Nigeria and Benin’s relationship has moved from informal trade exchanges to structured partnerships, even as both nations continue to deal with issues like smuggling and trans-border crime.
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“Our shared successes affirm a truth we must never lose sight of, the fact that cooperation, not conflict; dialogue, not suspicion, remain our best tools for overcoming obstacles,” she said.
She stressed the importance of aligning customs and trade processes between both countries, removing bottlenecks, and fostering investments that support local businesses.
The statement also confirmed that Nigeria’s Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, presented the key outcomes from the bilateral meeting.
Technical working groups from Nigeria and Benin are expected to meet again to address specific sectoral plans and submit progress reports in Abuja.
Benin’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Olushegun Bakari, and Minister of Industry and Trade, Shadiya Assouman, were also present at the meeting, alongside Nigeria’s Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, and other senior government officials.
Benin reaffirmed its commitment to maintaining strong, mutually beneficial ties with Nigeria as both countries pursue economic growth and stability.
During the WAES meeting in June, President Tinubu addressed West African leaders, urging them to move past fragmentation and seize the opportunity for greater regional unity and economic cooperation.
“Opportunity is not destiny. We must earn it through vision, integration, policy coherence, collaboration, and capital alignment,” Tinubu said.
“Intra-regional trade remains under 10%, a challenge we can no longer afford to ignore. The low trade is not due to a failure of will but a coordination failure.”
He also called for West African nations to prioritize local processing of rare minerals instead of exporting raw materials, highlighting the importance of regional manufacturing and value addition.
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Image Credit: Nairametrics
