In this age of specialization, West African countries find that they must depend on other countries for the purposes of items they need but cannot produce at all, or for the purchase of commodities which are needed to supplement home production.

To start with, what is International Trade? International trade may be defined as exchange, buying and selling of goods and services between two or more countries. International trade is also known as foreign or external trade, before it can take place, there must be exchange, buying and selling of goods and services across the national boundaries of two or more countries.

On the other hand, it means trade between one country and another, or between the people of one country and the people of another country. In this age of specialization, West African countries find that they must depend on other countries for the purposes of items they need but cannot produce at all, or for the purchase of commodities which are needed to supplement home production.

Read more in International Business and Trade
« Chinese Business in Southeast Asia
Company Candidate Survey, Overseas Relocation »

For instance, Nigeria buys machineries, vehicles, ships, airplanes, raw materials and many other things from other countries. Also, Nigeria sells to other countries such commodities as crude oil, palm produce, cocoa, groundnuts, hides and skins, cotton, which she is endowed with naturally or by specialization to produce more efficiently and cheaply than other countries.

Furthermore, the problems encountered in International trade in West African countries are listed below:

  1. Problems of Distance: International trade involves two or more countries that are far from one another.
  2. Problem of Transport and Communication: This problem arises when transport and communication are not efficient as what happens in West Africa.
  3. Currency Difference: Before a country buys anything from another country, she must change her currency for the other country’s currency because every country has its own currency. For instance, before a trader from Nigeria buy items from Ghana, he/she must convert naira to cede.
  4. Language Problem: Two countries that speak and understand the same language can trade more freely than the other way round.
  5. Climatic Problem: The harsh climatic conditions of some countries scare away traders from other parts of the world.
  6. Differences in Law and Legal Interpretation: International trade law and its interpretation in one country may differ from that of other countries.

In conclusion, the problems encountered in International trade in West African countries is a vital issue to mention but few.