The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Nigeria-China Parliamentary Relations, Hon. Jafaru Yakubu, has said China’s decision to grant zero-tariff treatment on 100% of tariff lines to African countries can accelerate structural economic transformation in Africa if countries build the productive capacity to take advantage of it.

Yakubu stated this on Friday in Abuja at an international seminar on “China’s Zero-Tariff Treatment on 100% of Tariff Lines for African Countries and its Implications for Structural Economic Transformation in Africa,” organised by the Centre for China Studies.

Yakubu noted that China has progressively expanded trade access for Africa. In December 2024, it eliminated tariffs on 100% of tariff lines for 33 African least-developed countries. From 1 May 2026, the policy was fully extended to 20 additional African least-developed countries for a two-year period, bringing the total to 53 African countries.

Citing UN Trade and Development data, he said China is now the principal export destination for African developing countries, with exports to China estimated at approximately $86 billion in 2025.

“The removal of tariff, therefore, potentially gives African producers a larger incentive to expand export into new product markets and increase production for the Chinese market,” Yakubu said.

He argued that the zero-tariff policy can support export diversification, agricultural and resource-based value addition, manufacturing expansion, participation in global value chains, and investment and technology spillovers.

However, he cautioned that tariff preferences alone are not enough. African economies, he said, still face major constraints in infrastructure, logistics, finance, skills, productive technology and meeting standards.

“The World Bank identifies these factors as important constraints on Africa’s manufacturing competitiveness and argues that successful participation in global value chains require policies that increase productivity and facilitate movement toward value activities,” Yakubu added.

He stressed that the African Union has already identified industrialisation, value addition, regional value chains and diversification as central to Africa’s long-term development strategy.

Yakubu also appealed to the Chinese Embassy to work with the House Committee to address visa challenges facing Nigerian traders, especially those from rural areas and Kano.

He recalled that during the COVID-19 pandemic many Nigerian business people traveled through the Niger Republic to obtain visas to access the Chinese market, and said complaints about visa processing at the Nigerian embassy persist.

“We commend His Excellency for what he has done so far. As a committee we are taking this up and we will extend it to the embassy and to the ambassador to see how we can go about it, because addressing it will help improve trade volume and make the trade balance between Nigeria and China better,” he said.

Yakubu congratulated the Centre for China Studies and the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria for convening the seminar, saying it offers a platform not just for discussion but for designing a policy framework to shape Nigeria-China relations.

“Nigeria-China relations date back several years, and forums like this help consolidate that partnership for the benefit of our two countries,” he said.

The seminar drew participants from government, academia, the private sector and the diplomatic community.

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