President says Nigeria is committed to free trade

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

Buhari gave the assurance during audience with the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Amb. Roberto Azevedo in Abuja on Monday.

The President assured him that Nigeria would remain part of the world market, in spite of the dwindling price of oil.

"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.

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

The WTO boss expressed delight that Nigeria continued to work with multilateral organisations, 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 (SMEs), which he described as biggest employers of labour in developing countries.

"We want to bring the private sector close so that we can understand the main challenges.

"Nigeria has a big part to play, though the times are difficult. Prices of oil are unprecedentedly low, emerging economies are slowing down, and commodity prices are shrinking.

"But majority of WTO members know that there is no gain in blocking goods," he said.