The Nigerian Export Promotion Counci (NEPC) has disclosed that Nigeria’s non-oil export revenue recorded a marginal decrease of $300 million in 2023.
Executive Director, NEPC, Nonye Ayeni, who made this known while addressing the media on the performance report of the non-oil export sector for 2023, said the value of exports decreased to $4.5 billion in 2023 from the $4.8 billion it was in the previous year.
This represents a 6.3 per cent decline, which the council attributed to challenges including the poor exchange rate, surge in informal trade, political instability in neighbouring countries and export rejects amongst others.
“A lot of our products go to the West African countries and we see what’s happening in terms of political issues, instability among the neighboring countries, and generally economic recession, and then exchange rate,” Ayeni stated.
She, however, noted that there was an increase in the volume of trade and export products, adding that 273 different products were exported of which urea, cocoa beans, cashew nut/kernels, sesame seed, and soya beans/meal were top on the list.
“In 2023, there were 6.68, million metric tons in terms of volume that was exported.
“And then if you look at the number of products increased by 273. So holistically, it’s really not a decline,” she added.