1,129 New Exporters Power Nigeria’s Non-oil Trade Expansion, Says Export Promotion Council

Nigeria’s non-oil export economy broadened significantly in 2025, with 1,129 new exporters entering the market, signalling a deepening of private-sector participation and a gradual shift away from commodity concentration, according to data from the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC).

The expansion in the number of exporters underpinned a year in which Nigeria recorded $6.1 billion in non-oil export earnings, an 11.5 per cent increase from $5.46 billion in 2024, and the highest level of formally recorded non-oil exports to date. More importantly for businesses, the growth reflected wider market entry, stronger pricing power and improved formalisation, rather than volume alone.

The executive director and CEO of NEPC, Nonye Ayeni, said at a briefing in Abuja on the sector’s 2025 performance and 2026 outlook that the surge in new exporters demonstrates non-oil trade is increasingly a viable commercial pathway for small and mid-sized businesses, not just large commodity players.

She noted that the performance reflects deliberate efforts to lower entry barriers, strengthen exporter capacity and improve market access, enabling a broader base of businesses to earn foreign exchange and build sustainable export operations.

Ayeni disclosed that Nigeria exported 8.02 million metric tonnes of non-oil products in 2025, a 10 per cent year-on-year increase. Export earnings, however, outpaced volumes, reflecting higher unit values and deeper processing across key value chains. Cocoa remained the country’s largest non-oil export, generating $1.99 billion, with derivatives such as cocoa butter, liquor, and cake contributing margins higher than those of raw beans. Fertiliser exports, primarily urea, added $1.29 billion, reinforcing Nigeria’s role in regional and global input markets.

Other products, including aluminium ingots, copper ingots, processed oilseeds and rubber, further diversified export receipts, reducing exposure to price volatility in any single commodity.

She explained that the growth in the number of exporters was driven mainly by small and medium-sized enterprises, supported by expanded training, compliance assistance, and digital trade initiatives.

According to Ayeni, in 2025, NEPC conducted 728 capacity-building programmes nationwide, reaching 96,221 participants—a sharp increase from 629 programmes and 64,000 participants in 2024. She added that these interventions have reduced shipment rejections, documentation errors, and contract disputes, directly improving cash flow, reliability, and profitability for exporting firms. “Exporting is no longer limited to a narrow group of companies. SMEs are moving from informal trade to structured export operations with repeat buyers and better margins,” Ayeni stated.

Ayeni said the formalisation of export activity strengthened links with the financial system, with 19,975 Nigeria Export Proceeds (NXP) forms processed in 2025 and 30 commercial banks actively facilitating export documentation, proceeds repatriation, and trade finance. She noted that greater banking participation has improved exporters’ access to working capital, letters of credit, and FX inflows, making non-oil exports more bankable and transparent.

To stabilise supply and enhance quality, NEPC also expanded export production clusters connecting farmers, processors, and exporters. A pilot sesame cluster in Kebbi State, covering 500 hectares and 250 farmers, integrates production standards, aggregation, and export compliance within a single commercial framework.

The model, Ayeni continued, improves yields, stabilises pricing and lowers rejection rates, while offering a template for replication under the One State One Product initiative.

She said digital platforms were playing an increasingly important role in expanding market access, with more than 70 Nigerian SMEs onboarded to Jumia’s e-commerce platform in 2025, allowing exporters to reach international buyers at lower entry costs. On inclusion, 146 women-led businesses benefited from the Women Exporters in the Digital Economy (WEIDE) programme, receiving training and grants ranging from $3,000 to $30,000 to scale export-ready operations.

She added that formalisation of export activity strengthened links with the financial system, with 19,975 Nigeria Export Proceeds (NXP) forms processed in 2025 and 30 commercial banks actively facilitating documentation, proceeds repatriation, and trade finance. Stronger banking participation has also improved access to working capital, letters of credit, and FX inflows, making non-oil exports more bankable and transparent.

To stabilise supply and enhance quality, Ayeni noted that the NEPC expanded export production clusters connecting farmers, processors, and exporters, adding that a pilot sesame cluster in Kebbi State, covering 500 hectares and 250 farmers, integrates production standards, aggregation, and export compliance within a single commercial framework.