Nigeria Content Online

We Chuanzhoug, Chinese minister of quality supervision, inspection and quarantine, on Monday said that Nigerian and Chinese businessmen have been colluding to import substandard products from China.

Mr. We said this when he visited Josephine Tapgun, minister of state for commerce and industry, at her office in Abuja. He said the Chinese government is already inspecting some markets in Nigeria to ascertain the level of substandard products imported from China. He said a high-level discussion is already on between the two governments to fine-tune ways of curbing the menace.

“The impact of the influx of substandard products from China to Nigeria has become a disturbing practice to the Chinese government,” he said.

Obstacles

“There are grey areas which both countries have to address before signing the agreement,” said Mr. We. He urged the ministry to set up a technical working group to look into the terms of the agreement and harmonize them for endorsement.

Ms. Tapgun said the ministry is working towards improving the trade relationship between the two countries.

She noted that a few months ago, President Goodluck Jonathan approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Chinese government in relation to product quality assurance.

She commended the visiting Chinese delegates for their efforts in ascertaining the level and impact of the menace themselves, “We urge that you step up the supervision and monitoring of the market, and by the time that is done, the result will yield a better insight into the origin of the problems and how quickly they can be addressed,” she said.

The Chinese have already signed a similar agreement with countries such as Ethiopia and Egypt, with impressive results said Mr. We.