Nigerian Perspectives on the Future Bilateral Free Trade Agreement between Norway and Nigeria

As the multilateral negotiations at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) are at a standstill, an increasing number of bilateral trade agreements are being negotiated. In Norway the multilateral negotiations are the responsibility of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while it is the Ministry of Trade and Industry which deals with the bilateral agreements. Most of these agreements are entered into through the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), and therefore most of the existing agreements apply
equally to Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. The explicit mandate of EFTA’s Free Trade Agreements (FTA) is to secure access to international markets and facilitate trade with partner countries.
However, the Norwegian Government has also stated that, while they see it as legitimate to give priority to Norwegian interests, they also strive to make sure that Norwegian policy (and not only development policy)
benefits the inhabitants in poor nations and makes it easier for them to meet global challenges.

This tension – between Norwegian selfinterests on the one hand and the question of poverty reduction and social development for the world’s poor on the other - lies at the heart of this report. Nigeria is a very interesting
case in this regard: While the country faces enormous challenges in terms of poverty and underdevelopment, it also represents a very interesting market for an increasingly globalised Norwegian export industry, particularly in the field of off-shore energy services.