QUICK UPDATES - NO. 3

Welcome to another update highlighting a few of our activities in Q1 & Q2 Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) . The overarching intention is to underline key wins in the non-oil sector as we focus on foreign exchange revenue generation and GDP growth

This is in alignment with the Industrial Revitalization Plan of the Honourable Minister Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI), Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite and the Renewed Hope Agenda of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR).

On March 12, 2024, I joined the Director General of WTO, Her Excellency Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala at the launch of the Standard Trade Development Facility aka STDF 845 project which focuses on boosting revenue from cowpea and sesame.

Jointly financed by the World Trade Organization, STDF 845 seeks to significantly reduce the number of rejected Nigerian cowpea & sesame exports at int'l borders through better compliance with Maximum Residue Levels of pesticides & avoidance of Salmonella contamination in the targeted value chains.

This will ultimately impact forex earnings, income generation & job creation while providing access to high value markets for Nigerian agri-food producers, processors, & exporters and improving the management of pesticide residues as well as pathogenic-micro-organisms.

On May 5 2024, The NEPC launched the logo for Shea Nigeria alongside a delegation of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs as well as officials of CBI . This logo is the mark & seal of quality Shea from Nigeria.

This was the culmination of years of planning and collaboration between the council and CBI which is a part of the Netherlands Enterprise Agency. Commissioned by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, CBI supports MSMEs in developing Countries

The CBI-NEPC Nigeria Shea Project 2022-2025 is a 4 year-long intervention program implemented by the CBI in partnership with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) as the lead implementing Agency.

CBI & the NEPC are working in collaboration to downscale implementation of the project with two private sector business support organizations - Shea Empowerment Foundation, (SEF) and Shea Women Association of Nigeria (SWAN).

Supply side constraints were also identified as challenges facing the sector and they include lack of processing facilities & standard processing capabilities as well as an unorganized market structure. This leaves most of the Shea exported as unprocessed nuts or un-exported

The support focuses on the MSMEs’ transition towards inclusive growth by helping strengthen their economic social and environmental sustainability. This is achieved through exports from such countries to Europe.?

The Nigerian Shea sector was selected by CBI following a Value Chain Selection (VCS) study in 2019. The study concluded that there is potential to further develop Nigeria’s Shea sector by adding value through processing and accessing new markets for export.

The study also highlighted the fact that because Shea grows in the wild, women who make up the core of the value chain are exposed to various security risks and danger. It therefore recommended specific opportunities to work towards improving the welfare of women in the value chain.

The CBI-NEPC Shea project has recorded significant wins: Developed a Sector Export Marketing Plan (SEMP), launched a logo, facilitated MSME participation at the MOM in The Netherland, France, Spain & Germany & facilitated capacity building to up skill women processors & exporters.

I joined Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, the Honourable Minister FMITI, as part of the FG’s delegation to the Korea-Africa summit which held in Seoul from June 3rd to 5th. It was a large economic event that attracted over 400 key Korean and African officials.

Our interactions at the summit which was attended mostly by top government functionaries, business executives and economic specialists, revolved around industrial growth and trade, food and security, climate change and a deepening of Korean-African relations.

Our high-level engagements with institutions like the Korean Chamber of Commerce and the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) amongst others is opening up economic as well as investment opportunities that will significantly impact the non-oil sector.

Thank you and have a good week. #DoubleYourExport