Nigeria is set to inaugurate a Master’s programme in International Trade through the support the World Trade Organisation (WTO) awarded to Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka.

The Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, confirmed this when the Nigerian Ambassador to the WTO led a delegation to visit her on Monday in Abuja.

Oduwole said the programme would be executed under a four-year endowment of 200,000 Swiss Francs from the WTO to UNIZIK.

She described the award as a significant milestone for the country, as this was the first time Nigeria had secured such an endowment in its 30 years of WTO membership. “This is a big one for Nigeria.

The programme focuses on key areas such as digital trade in Africa, MSMEs, the circular economy, and women’s entrepreneurship.

“It aligns with our priorities at the ministry and will effectively strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to implement WTO and African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) policies,” she said.

Oduwole lauded the efforts of Prof. Ngozi Egbuna, the lead researcher, and expressed pride in the initiative, which she described as a perfect fusion of academia and government collaboration to advance trade policy.

“I believe that with the success of Nnamdi Azikwe University, through your programme, Nigerian universities will be able to attract even more shares from the WTO and similar institutions.

“This is what Nigerian universities need to switch a bit to the academic side,” she said.

Amb. Adamu Abdulhamid, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the WTO, highlighted the competitive nature of the WTO Chairs Programme (WCP).

“This programme is domiciled in the WTO and supports academic institutions globally to strengthen trade policy research and capacity building,” Abdulhamid said.