The Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Dr. Ezra Yakusak, has announced that Nigeria’s non-oil export sector gained $2.6bn in the first six months of 2022.
He made this known in Ado Ekiti during a two-day Export hand-holding programme organised by NEPC for youth entrepreneurs in Ekiti State.
According to The Punch, he stated that the Federal Government is committed to initiating various programmes and projects to stimulate and develop the non-oil export sector of the economy.
“NEPC would not relent on its oars to ensure that every segment of the society is carried along in a bid to develop non-oil export in the country,” he said.
The Chief Executive Officer was represented by the Assistant Director, NEPC National Export Office, Olu Ikulajolu, who urged youths to increase their participation in the Federal Government’s economic diversification agenda for sustainable and inclusive economic growth
Ikulajolu said, NEPC had initiated programmes including the One State One Product; opened Export Trade House in Egypt, Nairobi and Togo; SHETRADE Desk for Women in Export; and Youth Export Development programme all geared towards facilitating export.
“It will interest you to note that the non-oil export performance in the first half of 2022 was put at about $2.6bn representing increase of 62.37 per cent compared with N1.60bn recorded during the same period in 2012,” Yakusak said.
The Trade Promotion Advisor, NEPC Ekiti Export Assistance Office, Mrs Iyabode Abe, who was also present at the event, said that the workshop was created to “Provide platform to encourage youths to participate in the global market to create employment and boost non-oil export trade.”
Abe assured that the council would be unrelenting in discharging its responsibility of promoting development of non-oil export in Nigeria. She then urged participants, youths and unemployed graduates to tap into the opportunities that abound in the non-oil export value chain.
She further listed NEPC programmes to create awareness on the development of the non-oil export sector in Ekiti State including a consultative forum on the development of bananas for export, capacity building on good agricultural practices for improved quality cocoa production and training workshops for SMEs, women entrepreneurs, fish farmers and youths on export logistics.
