The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has disclosed its plans to partner with one of Africa’s leading retailers, Shoprite, to promote export of Nigerian products.
The Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of NEPC, Mr Olusegun Awolowo, disclosed this in Abuja while speaking to journalists. According to him, the partnership is aimed at promoting made in Nigeria products outside Nigeria, Africa and beyond.
Plans Explained: Awolowo made it known that the NEPC was planning on working with Nigerian exporting companies and together would leverage the Shoprite platform in order to increase the basket of exportable products from Nigeria to African markets.
He further noted that the partnership would help meet the council’s quest to bring made-in-Nigeria products to over 15 million Nigerians in the diaspora with a view to increasing the volume and value of the country’s non-oil exports hence it was going to be a win-win situation for Nigerian exporters and Shoprite.
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More Details: The NEPC boss while showing his optimism, added that a Memorandum of Understanding would be considered and signed by both parties soon in order to actualise the objectives of the trade partnership.
“This development is commendable and would help our exporting companies improve the quality of their products as well as build strong brands for Nigerian goods in the international market.” He said.
Meanwhile, speaking on how Nigerian goods will be distributed in the international market, the General Manager of Shoprite Nigeria, Mr Carl Erickson, said that the retail outlet was looking forward to expanding outside of the African continent as part of a strategic initiative to increase their operations and generally promote goods of African origin.
The partnership is a good development in that it would encourage the exportation of finished products from Nigeria. By so doing, Nigeria will better diversify its non-oil sectors and earn more foreign exchange from them.
