…non-oil exports hit N12.36tn as government tracks $50bn investment announcements
The federal government has launched new trade intelligence tools to help Nigerian businesses identify export markets, understand market-entry requirements and make better-informed decisions as the country seeks to expand non-oil exports and strengthen its position in regional and global trade.
The tools, unveiled by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment in Abuja on Thursday, comprise the Trade Intelligence Report 2026 and the Trade Insights Nigeria Half-Year 2026 report. The ministry also plans to formally launch its Trade Intelligence Portal at CanEx Weekend 2026 in Lagos.
Jumoke Oduwole, minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, said the initiative was designed to make reliable trade data more accessible to businesses and help translate Nigeria’s growing export activity into sustainable commercial opportunities.
The portal is expected to provide exporters with information on promising markets, tariffs, entry requirements and trade data, helping businesses assess where demand exists and what they need to meet before entering foreign markets.
Presenting the reports, Tochukwu Nwachukwu, special adviser to the minister, said the Trade Intelligence Report 2026 reviewed Nigeria’s trade and investment performance in 2025, while the half-year report examined developments between January and June 2026.
He said the publications covered Nigeria’s trade with the rest of the world, Africa and the Economic Community of West African States, as well as investment inflows, trade agreements, policy initiatives and their implications for employment and economic growth.
According to Nwachukwu, the reports were also designed to provide a consistent source of information across the ministry and its agencies, strengthen accountability and help investors make informed decisions.
The initiative comes as Nigeria seeks to expand its export base and take advantage of opportunities under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Oduwole said Nigeria exported 281 products in 2025, compared with 246 in 2024, while the share of its exports going to other African countries rose from 11.3 percent to 15.4 percent over the same period.
Intra-African trade grew by 21 percent in 2025, she said, highlighting the potential for regional integration to create new markets for Nigerian businesses.
Non-oil exports reached a record N12.36 trillion in 2025, representing an increase of 36 percent from the previous year, while capital importation rose from about $3.9 billion in 2023 to more than $23 billion in 2025, according to the minister.
“The early indicators are encouraging. Capital importation rose from about US$3.9 billion in 2023 to over US$23 billion in 2025. Non-oil exports reached about 12 trillion Naira, with Nigerian products reaching more than 120 countries.
“Intra-African trade grew by 21% in 2025. Our task now is to turn capital flows into productive investment, export opportunities into completed transactions and policy reforms into measurable gains in the real economy. We are honest about the challenges businesses still face,” Oduwole said.
The government is also tracking investment announcements worth more than $50 billion recorded between 2024 and 2025, with over 25 percent having reached advanced stages of implementation, the minister said.
She said the administration’s trade and investment strategy focused on expanding global and regional demand for Nigerian goods and services, strengthening domestic production and competitiveness, attracting domestic and foreign investment, and using data and digital infrastructure to improve economic outcomes.
However, Oduwole acknowledged that high production costs, limited access to finance, logistics constraints and complex trade processes continued to weigh on businesses.
To address these challenges, the ministry is pursuing reforms to export incentives, special economic zones and Nigeria’s trade negotiation framework.
On the Export Expansion Grant (EEG) scheme, she said President Bola Tinubu had directed the ministry to clear outstanding claims up to 2022 and reform the programme to ensure its long-term sustainability.
A technical working group led by the ministry’s Commodities Export Department has been inaugurated with a 60-day mandate to develop a comprehensive reform framework, she said.
The proposed reforms are intended to make export incentives more transparent, predictable and financially sustainable, while linking support to performance.
Read also: Single window reform begins to cut trade bottlenecks, boost transparency – Oduwole
“Exporters who invest in production, value addition and international competitiveness must be able to trust that the government’s commitments are credible,” Oduwole said.
The ministry is also working with relevant agencies and stakeholders to modernise the regulatory framework governing free trade zones and special economic zones, including provisions for digital free zones to attract investment in technology and digital services.
Oduwole said the success of these zones would be measured by the number of functioning enterprises, goods and services produced, exports generated, technology transferred and jobs created.
She also highlighted Nigeria’s participation in the AfCFTA, saying trade agreements must deliver tangible benefits for local businesses through improved market access, export growth and investment.
Read also: What Nigeria is doing to become more investor friendly — Oduwole
Nigeria is positioning itself to take advantage of regional trade opportunities, including through its role as digital trade co-champion under the AfCFTA and its chairmanship of the AfCFTA Council of Ministers, she said.
In his remarks, Suleiman Audu, representative of the president of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), called for stronger public-private collaboration to ensure that trade intelligence translated into measurable business outcomes.
Audu urged the government to establish a quarterly public-private scorecard to track export volumes, customs clearance times, market access and investment delivery.
He also called for priority export value chains to be supported with reliable power, affordable finance, certification services and efficient logistics to enable Nigerian businesses to compete more effectively in international markets.
He said the effectiveness of trade policies should be measured by export value, repeat orders and jobs created rather than announcements alone.