President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the appointment of Patience Okala as National Coordinator of Nigeria’s African Continental Free Trade Area Coordination Office, with immediate effect.

Okala, a trade and investment specialist with experience in international negotiations and economic policy, previously served as a director at the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, where she led Nigeria’s engagements on bilateral investment treaties across several global platforms.

Her professional engagements include participation in negotiations and policy processes involving International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, International Institute for Sustainable Development, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Between 2023 and 2025, she served as Expert Adviser to the AfCFTA Secretariat in Accra, and later worked as Special Adviser to the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, where she supported efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s AfCFTA institutional framework.

During that period, she contributed to the oversight of the AfCFTA Central Coordination Committee and supported Nigeria’s role as Co-Champion of the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade.

In her new role, Okala will oversee domestic implementation of the AfCFTA agreement, coordinate stakeholder engagement nationwide, and advance Nigeria’s strategic participation in the continental trade framework.

The appointment follows the tenure of the late Olusegun Awolowo and reflects the Federal Government’s commitment to expanding intra-African trade, promoting non-oil exports, and strengthening economic diversification under the Renewed Hope Agenda.