Conference of Nigeria Trade Associations (CONiTA) at its Fourth Annual Conference in Lagos has called on the Organised Private Sector (OPS) to create more awareness about the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement for small and micro-enterprises.

CONiTA is Nigerias foremost trade associations talk shop with the aim to evolve sustainable models and to harness common potentials of trade associations in driving policies and offering recommendations for inclusive growth, good governance and shared prosperity in order to achieve sustainable development goals and the Africa Agenda, 2063.

The Conference had in attendance, diverse professionals and tradesmen, while speakers took turns to present papers and entertain questions during the panel sessions. Convener of the Conference, Mr. Nelson Obine, said the report of a survey of 1,804 MSME by the Centre for the Study of the Economies of Africa (CSEA) across Nigeria in four sectors viz: agriculture, manufacturing, services, and wholesale/retail, to ascertain the degree of small and micro enterprises knowledge of the AfCFTA opportunities and benefits, showed a huge knowledge gap of the potentials that existed with AfCFTA.

Seventy-three percent of the small and micro enterprises could not attest to the awareness of the AfCTA while only 33 per cent of the medium size entrepreneurs attested to awareness about it. The data therefore portrayed a lacuna yearning for inclusive economic growth across economic agents, trade associations and chambers of commerce that made up OPS, these included such bodies as the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), Nigeria Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Nigeria Association of Small Scale Industries (NASSI) and Nigeria Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME). He urged the leadership of the organised private sector, the leadership of AfCFTA and government to embark on mass awareness on the concepts and benefits of the AFCTA in Nigeria and in Africa in general.

Another speaker, Mr. Tony Peters, encouraged small businesses to consider the importance of book keeping and accounting. He suggested a model where trade associations can organise and deploy accounting services to members at a minimum rate periodically. The services will also include documentations as and when due for taxes, filling of documents and adherence to regulations. Peters added that trade associations should organize themselves in such a way that can make them credible to enable them access loans and grants from finance institutions. Small businesses looking to expand their businesses can come together as a group and liaise with leadership of their respective trade associations to get access to loan facility, institutions such as Bank of Industry has various kinds of loan for small and medium business organisations in Nigeria, he added.

Keynote speaker, Prof. Labode Popoola, in his paper, Delivery focused on Small and Medium Enterprise for Sustainable Development, Lesson for Nigeria; identified the brackets in capital structures and number of employees that are used in categorising the sizes of enterprise in Nigeria. Small Medium Enterprises (SME) are the major drivers of global economic growth with a role in achieving sustainable development.

He said, small enterprises were essentially local in nature and are localized in the place of residence, while medium enterprises could have a global market for their products and services. SMEs are socially and economically important, Prof Labode said, concluding that SMEs are the major drivers of global economic growth with a role in achieving sustainable development.

Mr. Emmanuel Olowoyo, a sustainability advocate, emphasised the key factors that shape prosperity in the coming decades to include; human well-being and economic development, education and gender empowerment, sustainable cities and infrastructures.

Another speaker, Dr. Amos Obi, countered the notion of poverty as a bane for unproductiveness. Innovation in small and medium scale enterprise, will help us change the narratives that says Nigeria is the headquarters of poverty in the world. SME plays vital roles in reducing unemployment which is a pointer to achieving a peaceful sustainable world, Obi said, emphasising that the economy provides opportunities for both the Small and Micro Enterprise in achieving inclusive economic growth and called for participation on Green Enterprise, as the world is focused on climate change.

Last years edition came to a climax with an award ceremony. Mr. Babatunde Irukera, Executive Vice-Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), and the Lagos State Ministry of Wealth Creation and Employment bagged Awards of Recognition respectively for outstanding dedication and commitment towards inclusive growth, shared prosperity and sustainable development.

The Conference has held three previous editions since it started in 2018, with the theme Harnessing the Power of Trade Associations for Good Governance, Inclusive Growth and Shared Prosperity. The theme for 2019 was Convergence of Informal Sector and Trade Associations for Sustainable Development; the theme of the conference in 2021 was Governance and Economic Prosperity in a Pandemic World both of them witnessed support and participation from diverse sectors and has been consistently growing in becoming Nigerias voice in the drive for sustainable development.