Originally published at The Crux
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China recently announced a landmark policy that grants tariff-free access to 53 of Africa’s 54 nations.
It’s a move that promises to reshape trade dynamics across the continent. Yet beneath the veneer of open markets lies a complex web of structural deficits, mounting debt, and the risk of entrenching Africa’s role as a mere raw-material supplier.
In the first of a two-part interview with Crux Now, Professor Franklin Nnaemeka Ngwu, a renowned expert in Strategic Management and Governance at Lagos Business School and an Independent Non-Executive Director of Caritas Nigeria, offers a sobering analysis of the new trade dynamic.
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Arguing that the removal of tariffs is a “powerful pull factor” that must be countered by robust internal “push factors,” Professor Ngwu examines the structural hurdles that prevent Africa from capitalizing on this opportunity.
From the risks of a widening trade deficit and the specter of a “circular debt trap” to the ethical imperative of mutual benefit, he challenges African leaders to move beyond rhetoric and take responsibility for building the industrial capacity needed to translate trade policy into genuine development.
Following are excerpts of that conversation….
Crux Now:
