Speaking at a workshop organized by the regional bloc in Lagos, Nigeria’s economic hub, Kalilou Traore, ECOWAS Commissioner for Industry and Private Sector Promotion, said it was regrettable that the region currently lacked such a strategy.
The commissioner said there was need for such a strategy to increase the market and volume of new and used cars imported into the region.
According to him, available data revealed that the regional development of the automotive industry in member-states was still low compared to the level of import.
Traore emphasized that the consequences of the lack of strategy was detrimental to economic growth in terms of capital flight, unemployment and underdevelopment.
He said it was in an effort to solve the problem, the ministers of Industry of ECOWAS at a meeting held in Accra in April mandated the commission to examine possibilities of developing a regional automotive industry policy.
The commissioner said the development of the strategy would require the political will for cooperation among member-states to ensure its success.
Earlier, Aminu Jalal, Director General, Nigerian Automotive Council, said the policy was among the four key areas of development identified by ECOWAS.
He said ECOWAS Auto Policy would attract more investors, fast track economic growth and development in West Africa. Enditem
Source: Xinhua
