The Federal Government has earmarked ₦881.13 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 ₦58.47 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 ₦143.99 million is for the establishment of export clusters, aggregation centres, and hubs across the six geopolitical zones.

Another ₦133 million was allocated for the establishment of common facility centres and export skills acquisition centres in four geopolitical zones, focusing on key regional export products.

The government also set aside ₦84 million for institutional strengthening aimed at improving the operational efficiency of the council.

Other key allocations include:

• ₦77 million for export certification under the Go Global, Go Certification initiative

• ₦70 million each for AfCFTA implementation, participation in international trade fairs and missions, and expansion of SME market access through e-commerce and digital trade

• ₦63 million for a standard trade development facility for sesame seed and cowpea

• ₦49 million for the operationalisation and licensing of domestic export warehouses

• ₦42 million to boost non-oil exports through the formalisation of informal cross-border trade and support for women- and youth-led businesses

The lowest allocations include ₦21 million each for asset verification at the NEPC headquarters and digital advertising to promote non-oil exports nationwide, while ₦37.14 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 Chief Executive Officer, 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 $6.1 billion, representing a year-on-year growth of about 11.5 per cent over the $5.4 billion 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.