The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has forecasted that Africa’s share of the volume of the world’s merchandise export and import will increase by 8.1 per cent and 5.5 per cent respectively in 2021.
It also projected a 2.6 per cent Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the continent in 2021 and 3.8 per cent for 2022.
The predictions were made in Zurich, Switzerland, yesterday by the Director-General of the WTO, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, during the virtual “WTO Press Conference on Trade Forecast for 2021 and 2022 and Review for 2020.”
Okonjo-Iweala, at another forum yesterday, also called on Nigeria along with other nations to embrace renewable energy sources to curb the threats that products of carbon-emitting origin pose to the world.
The WTO forecasted that global trade would return to its pre-pandemic trend by the fourth quarter of 2021, if vaccines production and distribution are accelerated.
Okonjo-Iweala stated that access to COVID-19 vaccines would be the best stimulus to global economic recovery and vowed that poor countries would never be made to stand in a queue waiting to get vaccines while 70 per cent of available vaccines are administered by only 10 countries as stated by the World Health Organisation.
DISCLAIMER
The OPINION / COLUMN is authored by independent contributors to the National Accord Newspaper. While contributors adhere to our editorial guidelines, they are not employed by the National Accord Newspaper. The perspectives and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not represent the views of the National Accord Newspaper or its staff.