Buhari moves to resolve plight of Nigerian traders in Ghana

President Muhammadu Buhari has directed that a ministerial delegation be sent to Ghana to resolve the lingering dispute between Nigerian traders and Ghanaian authorities.

The Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment, Adeniyi Adebayo, will lead the Federal Government delegation.

This is reportedly the second visit to Ghana over the trade dispute within one year.

In a statement by the Special Assistant on Media to the Minister, Ifedayo Sayo, the delegation will be made up of relevant stakeholders, and the visit will take place between May 31 and June 1.

There have been issues involving Nigerian traders in Ghana which has lasted for months.

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In 2020, shops belonging to Nigerian traders in Accra were locked up by Ghanaian authorities, who demanded evidence of their Ghana Investment Promotion Council (GIPC) registration.

For general trading, the GIPC requires payment of $1,000,000 minimum foreign equity, while registration fee is 31,500 cedis.

The President of the Nigerian Traders Union in Ghana, Chukwuemeka Nnaji, had said the humiliation of Nigerians in Ghana, “is getting out of hands,” and solicited the intervention of the Nigerian government.

The Nigerian traders had also expressed concern about the security of their wares in Ghana due to the challenges, and appealed to the Federal Government to evacuate them to Nigeria.

However, in September 2020, after meeting with a government delegation from Nigeria, Ghanaian President Nana Kufo-Adodo had said his country will review the GIPC registration requirements.

By John Chukwu…

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