The Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), has bemoaned the negative impact the Coronavirus is having on global supply chain.
President of ACCI, Prince Adetokunbo Kayode, stated this on Tuesday in Abuja when he hosted a business delegation from the European Union led by Gianioca Russo.
A statement issued by the Chamber’s Media and Strategy Officer, Mr. Lubem Gena, said Kayode noted that the ongoing disruption affecting the big economies might affect businesses in Africa.
The former Minister of Justice said: “We commend government for the ongoing drive to boost internal manufacturing and production capacity. We must do more, especially as Covid-19 is creating a challenge that may affect economic growth of many African nations.
“That China is slowing down implies commodity and oil exporting nations are going to be hard hit.
“Several reports from our members within and outside the country, confirm that the peak of the impact of Covid-19 on global supply chains will occur in mid-March.
“This will force thousands of companies to throttle down or temporarily shut assembly and manufacturing plants in the U.S.A and Europe,” he explained.
He also noted that the impact may be more than envisaged as many companies relied heavily or solely on factories in China for parts and materials.
Citing the falling activity of Chinese manufacturing plants in the past month, Kayode said that Nigeria and some African nations would be affected due to interlinking to China and regional supply chain hubs like South Africa and India.
The statement quoted Allard Castelein, the Chief Executive Officer of Rotterdam harbor as saying: “the effect of the coronavirus is already visible. The number of departures from Chinese ports has decreased by zero per cent these days.”
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