By:
Nana Appiah Acquaye
Pan-African
Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) has welcomed the appointment of Mrs.
Patience Okala as the National Coordinator of Nigeria’s African Continental
Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Coordination Office, following approval by President
Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The appointment takes immediate effect and is expected to
strengthen Nigeria’s engagement in continental trade integration.
PAPSS
expressed its commitment to continued collaboration with Nigeria’s AfCFTA
Coordination Office to advance seamless cross-border payments, digital trade
enablement, and the broader operationalization of the AfCFTA across the
continent.
Mrs.
Okala brings extensive experience in trade and investment policy, having
previously served as a director at the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission
(NIPC), where she led Nigeria’s engagements on bilateral investment treaties
and international negotiations across platforms including ICSID, UNCITRAL,
AfCFTA, UNCTAD, IISD, and the OECD. Her work contributed to positioning Nigeria
as a competitive investment destination.
Between
2023 and 2025, she served as an expert advisor to the AfCFTA Secretariat in
Accra, providing strategic guidance on continental trade integration. She also
held the role of Special Adviser to the Minister of Industry, Trade and
Investment, where she supported the strengthening of Nigeria’s AfCFTA
institutional framework and oversaw the Central Coordination Committee.
Her
appointment is expected to reinforce Nigeria’s role in advancing digital trade
and regional economic integration under the AfCFTA framework.
