The federal government signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with the United Arab Emirates to remove tariffs on some products.

Sam Onuigbo, a member of the governing board of the North-East Development Commission, said in Abuja on Tuesday that the game changer in Abu Dhabi was CEPA, which Nigeria signed with the UAE at the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.

Mr Onuigbo said, “With the CEPA signed in January 2026, the UAE will eliminate tariffs on 7,315 Nigerian products. This includes immediate duty-free access for 2,805 products (38.3 per cent), with the remainder phased out over three to five years, covering agricultural and industrial goods.

“Similarly, under the Nigeria/UAE CEPA, also signed in January 2026, Nigeria has eliminated tariffs on 6,243 products imported from the UAE. That agreement creates these wonderful opportunities between Nigerians and the Emirates.”

Mr Onuigbo said that the agreement is massive and would facilitate an environment for businesspersons in Nigeria, who have businesses that are verifiable and identifiable, to go over there and open offices, and also to work there for three months and come back.

He commended President Bola Tinubu for the agreement, saying it was geared toward repositioning Nigeria, creating an enabling environment for employment, and, of course, making everybody happy.

“Nigeria is ready for business. Nigeria’s carbon market framework policy was unveiled again there in Abu Dhabi,” he said.

“Nigeria is a nation of nearly 250 million people and has, over the years, faced the challenge of securing enough energy to meet its economic and industrialisation targets.

“Because of that, Nigeria has been engaging in different activities, for instance, the Energy Transition Plan, enactment of the Climate Change Act, and the Electricity Act, which the president signed barely eight days after he assumed office in 2023.

“This shows the importance of addressing the energy gap; having enough energy, electricity, is a fundamental point to developing industrially, which Nigeria deems necessary,” he added.

Mr Onuigbo lauded Nigeria’s participation in the Abu Dhabi summit, saying it would further enable global economic opportunities for people to work together within Nigeria and the UAE.

He added that the president’s collaboration would address the challenges and devastating effects of climate change as well as build up Nigeria’s economy in 2026.

(NAN)