By Victor Ahiuma-Young

Organized labour has called on African governments to insist on fair international trade and not undermine the rights of African workers and national development objectives in their desperate quest for foreign investment.

Ayuba Wabba, NLC President

Addressing the Working committee meeting on Trade  and Industrial Policy of IndustriALL  Global Union in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Vice President of IndustriALL, African Region, Issa Aremu, observed that decisions of multinationals to invest in Africa “are often inspired by access to vast market, tax holidays, cheap raw materials and supply chains, subsidies and low wages rather than mass decent sustainable jobs, technology transfers and national development.”

Aremu who is also  the General Secretary of the National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria, NUTGWN, contended that miserable low wages, long hours of works, child labour and what he called “labour dumping and   direct importation of cheap prisoner- workers” to Africa were the new motivations for some Chinese investment in Africa.

He urged African governments to be weary of trade and investment deals that could consign them perpetually to the status of  producers of raw materials, export base for foreign multinationals’ products as distinct from developing producer economies.

Aremu, who argued that international trade issues were “too important and too weighty to be left with governments alone” expressed labour support for the recent proposals   by 90 developing countries including Nigeria demanding for changes in the rules of World Trade Organization (WTO) that   put constrains on national development priorities.

He argued that the demand for fair international trade must be linked with development of African economies.

“Africa should   copy China by also adding value to its abundant natural raw materials, create jobs for its youthful population, and stop uncritically clapping for China which takes the Continent’s    raw materials,   dumps finished goods and even  imports prisoners/workers to Africa. China has dramatically uplifted 250 million citizens out of absolute poverty through job-led growth,  mass industrialization and infrastructural development in the last two decades.   What was good for China is even more desirable for Africa”,    he declared.