In April, 2023, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) in collaboration with Zeenab Foods Limited, commissioned the first Nigerian Export Trade House in Changsha, the capital of Hunan province, China. The Nigerian Export Trade House was established to promote non-oil exports for sustainable growth and reduce dependency on crude oil.
This is not the first time the Dr. Ezra Yukusak led council has made deliberate efforts at promoting non-oil export, a key feature of the Nigerian Revenue.This initiative will enhance non-oil products to be visible in the global market as a viable means for economic growth, poverty alleviation, industrial development, employment opportunities and also help to boost foreign exchange earnings.
Little wonder NEPC is confidently expecting no less than $5 billion in earnings from non-oil exports this year as against the $4.82 billion realised in 2022. Nigeria, as a matter of fact, exported a total of 214 products in 2022, due to value addition and good packaging.
To exporters, proper packaging and value addition are critical toward optimising the value of any product.
Adding value to produce and ensuring proper packaging would guarantee acceptability in the world market.
Yakusak in a recent event, attributed the low value of agricultural produce from Nigeria in the international market to the raw state in which they are exported without processing and packaging to attract more financial value for them.
According to him, exporters will earn more revenue from their produce if they add more value to it.
“Nigeria is so blessed, we have so many products in this country that you will be amazed,’’ he said.
Yakusak said that the volume of products exported in 2022 was prompting NEPC to create a programme “Export 774’’ with a view to identifying exportable products in the 774 local government areas in Nigeria.
Exporters will earn more revenue from their produce if they add more value to it.
Nigeria is so blessed, that we have so many products in this country that you will be amazed.
The volume of products exported in 2022 prompted NEPC to create a programme “Export 774’’ with a view to identifying exportable products in the 774 local government areas in Nigeria.
This is a laudable step, that NEPC just realised, that people are not aware of the products in this country.
The Export 774 is targeted at identifying the products in all the 774 local governments of Nigeria.
We need to identify them, we identify their potential and of course the specific places where they are cited.
Therefore with good packaging, NEPC’s expectations can be attained, due to the success recorded from the ongoing non-oil survival campaigns put in place by the agency.
The need to grow the non-oil sector is a child of necessity given the volatility of crude, which has put public finances in tatters.
Yukusak said the trade house will serve as a hub for exporters to export their commodities seamlessly without any hitch.
It is pertinent to give kudos to the federal government for entrusting the company with the mandate to set up and operate the Trade House in China.
With this new feat, prospective exporters need to leverage on this opportunity to export their non-oil products as the risk inherent in export would be eliminated.
The agency also successfully certified 154 SMEs in 2022 to meet international export trade demands while looking forward to certifying over 200 this year. It is equally gladdening to note that Nigerian ginger had become the toast of the global market owing to the best content and quality.
Olamide Adeniji is a member of the editorial team of TheScript Newspaper
