The Federal Government is targeting zero rejection of Nigerian products at the global market to drive foreign exchange earnings and boost revenue.
Speaking at the launch of Export4Survival campaign held by the Nigerian Export Promotion Council in Abuja on Monday, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo, said practitioners in the non-oil export value chain should adhere to global best practices for their products to receive acceptability with zero export reject.
He stressed that Nigerian products must be competitive in the international market to drive foreign exchange earnings and provide a buffer against externalities.
“It cannot therefore be overemphasized that the success of the Export4Survival campaign needs the buy-in of all players in the non-oil export space,” he said.
According to Adebayo, there was no gainsaying the fact that with the Export4Survival campaign, significant mileage would be gained in the volume and value of exported Nigerian products and services.
He said the official launch of the campaign was an official endorsement of the initiative to stimulate the consciousness of all Nigerians to the realities that diversification of the productive base of the economy was key to employment generation, wealth creation and poverty reduction in the country.
“The Export4Survival campaign should therefore be embraced by Stakeholders, the Business Community, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), Trade Associations, the Organized Private Sector (OPS) etc, as a brand that that will be a game changer in the socio-economic space of our national development.”
Nigeria is predominantly an import-dependent economy, with crude oil making up 60-70 per cent of the government revenue and around 80-90 per cent of foreign exchange earnings.
The country earned over $40bn from crude oil but about $10bn in non-crude in 2021. The NEPC said it was planning to change the situation to reduce pressure on the country’s foreign reserves.
The NEPC Chief Executive Officer, Ezra Yakusak, said the NEPC’s vision was to make the world a market place for Nigerian non-oil products to rejuvenate the country’s fragile economy.
