Nigeria’s Federal Minister of International Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, has mentioned that in 2024, West Africa’s exported items have been valued at over $166 billion.
Regardless of this determine, the minister harassed that solely 8.6 per cent of that commerce remained inside “our borders.”
He made this comment on the totally packed West Africa {Economic} Summit (WAES) 2025, presently being held in Abuja and attended by Nairametrics.
West Africa Commerce
The minister harassed that other than related knowledge on West Africa’s exported items, imports observe the identical sample, closely tilted in the direction of companions outdoors the continent.
“Allow us to not overlook that in 2024, West Africa exported items valued at over $166 billion. But solely 8.6 per cent of that commerce remained inside our borders.
“Equipment and manufactured items from China, India, the USA, and the European Union dominate our import flows, whereas we proceed to export unprocessed uncooked supplies,” he mentioned.
He highlighted, nonetheless, that this trajectory and concern isn’t just capability, however orientation.
- He mentioned that as governments, states, and the area, there’s a must do extra to make it straightforward to carry exercise throughout the formal sector, to carry with it the economies of scale and different efficiencies that can speed up progress and assist entrepreneurs.
- He noticed that the casual sector has discovered methods to ship what the market needs, thereby bypassing borders and rules when they’re too sluggish and bureaucratic.
Extra insights
On the occasion, President Bola Tinubu referred to as for strengthening regional worth chains throughout West Africa to spice up the low degree of intra-regional commerce within the space.
He famous that intra-regional commerce in West Africa stays below 10%, a problem stakeholders can not afford to disregard.
- Tinubu defined that the low commerce within the sub-region shouldn’t be because of a failure of will however quite “a coordination failure.”
What to find out about Nigeria’s exports in ECOWAS and African borders
Nigeria has witnessed a significant shift in its commerce dynamics, with Africa rising because the nation’s largest export vacation spot in 2024.
In This autumn 2024, Nigeria’s exports to Africa stood at N2,042.06 billion or 10.20% of the overall exports; out of which, items exported to ECOWAS international locations have been valued at N1,175.44 billion or 57.56% of the overall exports to Africa, in response to NBS.
Africa collectively took the lead as Nigeria’s largest regional export market in 2024, accounting for N8.74 trillion in exports.
What it is best to know
WAES 2025 is an initiative of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, applied by the Ministry of International Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It’s envisioned to function a high-level platform for strategic dialogue and regional cooperation.
With the theme, “Unlocking Commerce and Funding Alternatives within the Area,” the Summit goals to deepen {economic} cooperation, facilitate cross-border funding, and speed up sustainable growth throughout key sectors similar to commerce, vitality, agriculture, infrastructure, digital finance, and regional integration.
The summit featured the gathering of Heads of State and Authorities from Benin Republic, Liberia, Sierra Leone, senior policymakers, enterprise leaders, growth establishments, and youth innovators from throughout the West African sub-region.