Nigeria says committed to free trade

Nigeria remains fully committed to free international trade despite its present economic circumstances, President Muhammadu Buhari has said.

Buhari gave the assurance during a meeting with the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Roberto Azevedo in Abuja, Nigeria's capital city on Monday.

Nigeria would remain part of the world market, in spite of the dwindling price of oil, the Nigerian leader said.

"I am glad that you are aware of the position we have found ourselves, the state of our economy, our consumption pattern, and many others," the President said.

"Despite it all, we remain committed to the ideals of free international trade championed by the WTO," he said.

Earlier, the WTO boss expressed delight that Nigeria continued to work with multilateral organizations, adding that the trade group would soon start conversations on important issues for the country.

He said the issues included the development of small and medium scale enterprises, which he described as biggest employers of labor in developing countries.

"We want to bring the private sector close so that we can understand the main challenges and Nigeria has a big part to play, though the times are difficult," he said.

"But the majority of WTO members know that there is no gain in blocking goods," Azevedo added. Endit