Manufacturers and exporters have been urged to work towards efficient expertise so as to ensure quality of finishing and acceptable packaging of products under AGOA.

The presidential adviser on AGOA, Mrs. Modupe Sasore, stated this in a paper presented at the 2003 annual seminar/luncheon of the small and medium scale enterprises/distributive trade group of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Lagos.

She disclosed that the responsibilities of manufacturers and exporters under AGOA include the ability to deliver orders (usually large orders) on time, added that record keeping of detailed production information, compliance with the rules of origin and competitiveness in prices are part of their responsibilities.

Sasore said that the country on the other hand has sole responsibility of meeting eligibility conditions, enforcement of compliance to provisions of Act while cost of non compliance is grave.

She added that the country has to attain specific sector requirements for exports to the US.

Speaking further Sasore stated that benefits of AGOA initiative include creation of thousands of new jobs, boosting of Nigeria's industrialisation efforts by stimulating high foreign direct investment (FDI) to take advantage of the duty free entry of Nigerian products into the USA, as existing factories are upgraded and new ones established to meet the demands of the USA market.

She also said that the benefits of AGOA would sustain poverty alleviation and wealth, expand export and direct a large number of goods produced in Nigeria stimulated by the duty-free trade with the US as well as giving opportunity to market Nigerian products directly to the over 38 million African Americans amongst others.

Sasore said further that the challenges of AGOA are not less for the qualified manufacturer alone, a lot of constraints are still on the ground such as accessibility to fund at affordable bank rates, and initial orders which usually form the bedrock of future business are often too big for the production capacity of SME.

She called on SMEs in the country to respond to challenges in global economic market by bringing about innovations that would make SMEs take advantage of the AGOA incentives.

While, she hopes Nigeria will record success in AGOA through different governments intended and existing programmes for the private sector.

Meanwhile, LCCI president Chief John Adeyemi, in his opening remarks, lamented that while countries like Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania and others have been benefiting from AGOA, Nigeria is still lacking behind.

He disclosed that total number of exports to the US under GSP and AGOA between January and September this year was over 10 billion dollars. "We should therefore face the challenge of positioning our economy to have a piece of the action," Odeyemi said.

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