Nigeria Earned $4.5bn From Non-Oil Export In 2023– NEPC

The Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council Mrs. Nonye Ayeni has announced that it raked $4.5bn in revenue from non-oil exports in 2023 below the $4.8bn realized by the sector in 2022.

Ayeni in Abuja while briefing newsmen on the 2023 Progress Report/Performance of the Non-oil export sector in Abuja on Thursday, said the drop in the revenue was a result of the political tensions.

She also identified the rejection of some of the nation’s non-oil commodities as one of the major factors responsible for the decline compared to that of 2022.

Speaking on how the $4.5bn was realized she said, “The volume of Nigeria’s non-oil exports continues to increase over the years and specifically in 2023, we recorded a volume of 6.685 million metric tonnes of exportable products thus reaffirming the widely held assertion that the non-oil sector holds the key to the revitalization of our country’s economy”.

Disclosing the number of products exported, the NEPC boss said, “A total of 273 products ranging from manufactured, semi-processed, solid minerals to agricultural commodities were exported.

“And the top commodities exported were urea/fertilizer which accounted for 20.10 per cent, cocoa beans came second at 13.19 per cent and sesame seeds at 9.03 per cent.”

She also noted that other top products exported were, soya beans/meal, cashew nuts/kernels, aluminium ingots, and hibiscus flower respectively.

“It is pertinent to note that so many exportable products and their derivatives are progressively gaining prominence as the demand for these products in the global market continues to increase. These include but are not limited to wheat bran, cocoa cake, lithium ore, and sorghum” she said.

Subsequently, she disclosed that of the top 20 exporting companies in Nigeria, Indorama-Eleme Fertilizer and Chemical Limited took the lead with $524,327,305.66 in value while Dangote Fertilizer Limited recorded the second-highest value of $383,071,252.58 respectively.

Also, Ayeni noted that 21,390 NXP forms were processed in 2023 with 32 banks participating in the program. However, Zenith Bank PLC processed the highest NXP at 39.03 per cent, while United Bank of Africa (UBA) Plc and First Bank of Nigeria recorded 10.55 per cent and 9.88 per cent respectively.

Highlighting the participation of ECOWAS in the non-oil export sector of the economy, the NEPC boss revealed that 13 member countries of ECOWAS (excluding Cape Verde), actively engaged in the importation of Nigerian products throughout the year 2023.

She said, “Nigeria’s non-oil products made a significant impact in the global market, penetrating markets across 124 countries in the following regions, including Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. Notably, Brazil, China, and Japan emerged as the top three importing countries respectively for non-oil products exported from Nigeria.

“1,638,694.46 metric tons amounting to 343.942m dollars constituted 7.61 per cent of the total export value. Interestingly, only Ghana made it to the top 20 global importers from Nigeria, occupying the 18th position on the export log”.

Revealing the plans of NEPC to control the rejection of exported products, Ayeni said, ”The Council is already addressing the issues by collaborating with relevant agencies and parastatals to create awareness, build capacity in the area of good agricultural practices, labelling and packaging and ensure adherence to quality and standards of our exports in the global market and establishment of Export Trade Houses.”