- Nigeria’s non-oil export landscape is undergoing a structural transformation.
- Nigerian businesses are becoming more innovative, competitive, outward-looking, and more integrated into regional and global value chains.
- Within this macroeconomic environment, Nigeria has taken deliberate steps to position itself as a central player in intra-African trade.
Nigeria’s non-oil export landscape is undergoing a structural transformation.
Recent data from the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) shows that non-oil exports crossed $4.5 billion in 2024, driven by solid performance in cocoa, sesame, urea, cashew, and manufactured products.
In 2025, the country earned over $6.1billion, reflecting sustained momentum and a growing contribution of the non-oil sector to foreign exchange stability.
But beyond the numbers, something more fundamental is happening:
Nigerian businesses are becoming more innovative, competitive, outward-looking, and more integrated into regional and global value chains.
Growing accessibility of resources, as well as the accelerating implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), are significantly amplifying this shift.
Africa, the Next Frontier of the Global Market
According to the World Bank, the continent’s population, median age, GDP and consumer spending as of 2024 are 1.5bn, 19years, $3trillion and 70-80% of GDP, respectively.
As the second most populous continent in the world after Asia, these macroeconomic factors are a major driver of the economy.
Within this macroeconomic environment, Nigeria has taken deliberate steps to position itself as a central player in intra-African trade.
In 2025, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment recorded several milestones that directly strengthen export competitiveness:
- Ratification of the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade
- Establishment of the AfCFTA Central Coordination Committee
- Gazetting of provisional tariff concessions
- Completion and publication of Nigeria’s first AfCFTA five-year implementation review
In addition to these milestones, practical enablers are also emerging, supporting sector growth.
The new export air-cargo corridor to East and Southern Africa has reduced logistics costs and improved delivery timelines.
The ministry’s market-intelligence tool, covering opportunities in agro-processing, cosmetics, and textiles across thirteen African markets, is providing exporters with data-driven insights rather than abstract speculations.
These are not theoretical reforms. They are real levers that reduce friction and open doors.
How AI Is Quietly Reshaping Nigeria’s Export Competitiveness
Artificial Intelligence is becoming a silent accelerator in the non-oil export ecosystem. Across the value chain, AI is enabling:
- Predictive quality control for agro-exports
- Market-intelligence analytics that identify demand patterns across African and global markets
- Smart logistics planning that reduces delays and post-harvest losses
- Digital identity and traceability systems that boost buyer confidence across local and export markets
- Automated documentation and compliance checks
Forward-thinking exporters, especially MSMEs, are already using AI-powered tools to improve product consistency, reduce rejection rates, and negotiate better pricing.
For a country where quality-related rejections have historically undermined export earnings, the adoption of AI in trade will open up a vista of opportunities.
Exports as a Job Engine
Non-oil exports go beyond driving FX growth; it also sits at the intersection of growth and employment, making them one of Nigeria’s most powerful levers for employment generation.
According to NEPC estimates, every $1 billion increase in non-oil exports can create between 40,000 and 70,000 direct and indirect jobs across farming, processing, logistics, packaging, haulage, and professional services.
Sectors such as Cocoa processing, Cashew processing, Textiles and apparel, Leather and footwear, and Digital services exports have some of the highest job-creation multipliers in the economy, and as theAfCFTA lowers barriers and expands market access, these labour-intensive sectors stand to absorb thousands of young Nigerians, a demographic dividend waiting to be unlocked.
Export Readiness Is the Real Competitive Edge
Nigeria’s export potential is vast, but potential alone does not translate into contracts. Exporting requires:
- Quality assurance
- Documentation
- Compliance
- Logistics
- Risk management
- Working capital
Many capable businesses have failed because these fundamentals were not established early enough.
Banks Must Enable Execution.
At Sterling Bank, we understand that financing is only one part of the export equation. True support means providing capital and the capability to use that capital effectively.
This thinking led to the creation of the Sterling Bank Non-Oil Export Academy, designed to equip entrepreneurs with practical knowledge across Export readiness, Pricing strategy, Compliance, Documentation, and Logistics.
Our partnership with the Enterprise Development Centre of Pan-Atlantic University ensures participants receive rigorous, market-relevant export training designed to translate learning into real economic activity, after which they receive structured certification upon completion.
The Academy is further structured to build end-to-end export capability, strengthening product readiness, compliance, market access, financial management, and execution across non-oil value chains.
We are also integrating AI-enabled tools into our advisory and capacity-building programmes to help exporters improve documentation accuracy, market research, and operational efficiency.
Looking Ahead
Non-oil exports are more than an economic diversification strategy. They represent a powerful commercial opportunity for Nigerian businesses and a pathway to large-scale job creation.
With AfCFTA implementation deepening, AI-driven tools becoming more accessible, and more Nigerian firms embracing regional markets, the country is better positioned than ever to unlock the value of Africa’s 1.3-billion-person market.
But strategy alone is not enough. Nigeria needs execution, and execution requires capability, collaboration, and consistency.
The momentum is real. The opportunity is clear. Now is the time to deepen capacity and convert Nigeria’s export potential into a measurable economic impact.
Author Bio
Akporee Idenedo is the Divisional Head of Commercial Banking at Sterling Bank Limited.
He leads strategic initiatives that empower Nigerian businesses and entrepreneurs in the Healthcare, Education, Agriculture, Renewable Energy, Transportation, Trade and Manufacturing sectors with a focus on trade finance, export development, and capacity-building programmes.
Sterling Bank Limited is a full-service national commercial bank in Nigeria and a member of Sterling Financial Holdings Group.
With a heritage of more than 60 years, the bank has evolved from Nigeria’s pre-eminent investment banking institution to a trusted provider of retail, commercial, and corporate banking services.
Akporee Idenedo, Divisional Head, Commercial Banking, Sterling Bank Limited, Writes from Lagos
