By Victor Nwachukwu
The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) says the country generated a total of $4.8b dollars as revenue from non oil exports in year 2022.
The Chief Executive Officer of NEPC, Dr Ezra Yakusak, said this at its 2022 Exporters’ Performance Appraisal meeting held in Owerri on Thursday.
Yakusak, who was represented by the NEPC’s Trade Promotion Advisor in Imo, Mr Anthony Ajuruchi, said that the generated revenue was a result of accelerated “Export for Survival” campaigns carried out by the Council in year 2022.
He added that in the year under review, Nigeria-made products were exported to 122 countries, with Brazil topping the list for most products.
He enumerated other achievements of the NEPC to include the establishment of domestic export houses and export trade houses in Togo, Cairo, Kenya and China as well as the registration of 3,986 exporters across the country, with two of the registrants drawn from Imo.
He also said that the NEPC coordinated the Nigeria – Gambia Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) exhibition, with the result that export order worth $250,000 was generated, a Memorandum of Understanding signed and new Nigeria made products introduced into the Gambia market.
According to him, the NEPC also coordinated the participation of 20 Nigerian export companies at the 2022 Togo International Trade fair, with two of the companies from Imo, namely; Green Health Limited and Logos Super Food.
“In 2022, our holistic efforts and accelerated Export for Survival campaigns resulted in all these achievements.
“In Imo alone, a total of 805 MSMEs were trained on non oil export business, 39 new companies were registered for export and three exporters acquired FDA certification for their products with the help of the NEPC ,” he said.
He, however, said that in year 2023, the NEPC would be targeting increased non oil exports through more participation at trade fairs, better packaging and labeling of products, more formal exports and the use of the Onne non oil export terminal, in Rivers.
Speaking, Chief Executive Officer of Green Health Limited, one of the companies that participated in the Togo International trade fair, Mrs Amaka Apolomo, thanked the NEPC for its trainings and international exposures.
She expressed delight over the selection of her products for exhibition at the trade fair adding that participation at the event was a huge boost for her company as she secured more export orders.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that other export companies including Mikotoko Nigeria Limited among others were present at the meeting. (NAN)
