Abuja, Nigeria — The Federal Government has earmarked N881.13 million for capital projects of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) in the 2026 Appropriation Bill, following Nigeria’s record-breaking $6.1 billion non-oil export performance in 2025.
Details from the 2026 budget proposal submitted to the National Assembly show that the allocation is targeted at institutional strengthening, export infrastructure, certification, market access, and value-chain development across the country’s six geopolitical zones.
The NEPC funding forms part of the proposed N58.47 trillion federal budget and reflects the government’s growing policy drive to diversify foreign exchange earnings away from crude oil.
How the Funds Will Be Spent
A breakdown of the NEPC capital vote shows that the largest allocation of N143.99 million is for the establishment of export clusters, aggregation centres, and hubs across the six geopolitical zones.
Another N133 million was allocated for the establishment of common facility centres and export skills acquisition centres in four geopolitical zones, focusing on top regional export products.
The government also set aside N84 million for institutional strengthening aimed at improving the operational efficiency of the council.
Other key allocations include:
- N77 million for export certification under the Go Global, Go Certification initiative
- N70 million each for AfCFTA implementation, participation in international trade fairs and missions, and expanding SME market access through e-commerce and digital trade
- N63 million for a standard trade development facility for sesame seed and cowpea
- N49 million for the operationalisation and licensing of domestic export warehouses
- N42 million to boost non-oil exports through formalisation of informal cross-border trade and support for women- and youth-led businesses
The lowest allocations include N21 million each for asset verification at NEPC headquarters and digital advertising to promote non-oil exports nationwide, while N37.14 million was budgeted for innovations in accounting, budget management, and financial disclosure.
Record Export Performance
The funding follows a January report showing that Nigeria’s non-oil exports rose to $6.1 billion in 2025, the highest figure recorded since the NEPC was established nearly 50 years ago.
NEPC Executive Director and CEO, Nonye Ayeni, said the figures were based on data from pre-shipment inspection agencies.
“Nigerian non-oil export performance in 2025 reached an all-time high of approximately $6.1bn, representing a year-on-year growth of about 11.5 per cent over the $5.4bn recorded in 2024,” Ayeni said.
She added that the performance cut across agricultural commodities, processed and semi-processed goods, industrial inputs, and solid minerals, with Nigeria exporting 281 non-oil products during the year. However, she cautioned that a significant volume of trade still occurs informally across land borders.
Stakeholders React
Industry stakeholders have welcomed both the export growth and the budgetary allocation, while calling for greater emphasis on value addition.
The Director-General of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Segun Ajayi-Kadir, described the allocation as encouraging but stressed the need for clearer data on export composition.
“What is critical is knowing how much of the non-oil export value comes from manufactured products and services,” he said, adding that sustainable growth depends on moving up the value chain.
Similarly, the National Vice President of the National Association of Small-Scale Industrialists (NASSI), Segun Kuti-George, praised NEPC’s role in training and exposing MSMEs to international markets.
“The contribution of NEPC cannot be overemphasised. They have supported MSMEs through training, exhibitions, and fully funded trade missions to countries like Egypt and Algeria,” he said.
As Nigeria pushes deeper into economic diversification, analysts say the effectiveness of the 2026 NEPC capital projects will depend largely on how well they translate export growth into jobs, value addition, and long-term competitiveness.
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