Nigeria is quietly building what officials believe could become one of its most valuable export industries outside oil, betting that coordinated policy, digital infrastructure and international partnerships can transform the country’s vast pool of skilled professionals into a globally competitive services export engine.
While much of the public conversation around Nigeria’s digital economy has focused on technology startups and digital skills training, the National Talent Export Programme (NATEP) says the bigger ambition is to create an institutional framework capable of helping Nigerian talent compete in global markets for software development, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, fintech and business process outsourcing.
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“We are witnessing a shift in the global economy, where greater value and the competitive advantage will be determined by a nation’s ability to cultivate talent, harness deep knowledge-based industries, and participate in high-value services markets built seamlessly across borders.
“As Africa becomes a more integrated marketplace, the continent has a unique opportunity to emerge as the leading contributor to the world’s talent economy. NATEP is laying the foundation for Nigeria to lead this transition by unlocking the full potential of our human capital, strengthening international partnerships, and positioning Nigerian talent at the centre of the next era of global services trade,” says Jumoke Oduwole, minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment.
Nigeria is deliberately building the policy and governance systems required to compete credibly in the global services export economy, according to Teju Abisoye, national coordinator of NATEP.
“Our mandate at NATEP is to position Nigeria as a premier global talent hub by building an enabling ecosystem through policy, platforms, promotion, and partnerships. The progress achieved over the past year brings us closer to our strategic objectives of enabling one million direct export-linked jobs, supporting millions more indirect jobs, attracting significant investment into the sector, and equipping Nigerians with globally recognised skills and certifications.
“Nigeria is not only preparing for the future of work; it is helping build the policy and institutional foundations required to compete and lead in it,” Abisoye stated.
That institutional shift began in November 2025 when the Federal Executive Council approved the establishment of the National Coordination Mechanism for Services Exports (NCMSE), creating a formal governance structure to align agencies and programmes working on talent development, digital innovation and export promotion.
The NCMSE now provides a single platform that aligns agencies including the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), the Outsource to Nigeria Initiative (OTNI), the Nigerian Export Promotion Council and flagship talent programmes behind one national agenda.
The approval of the National Coordination Mechanism fundamentally changed how government approaches services exports. Instead of different institutions pursuing separate initiatives, Nigeria now have a governance architecture that aligns policy, implementation and institutional priorities around a shared national objective.
According to NATEP’s implementation roadmap, the governance framework moved quickly from approval to execution. The inaugural NCMSE session was held at the Nigerian Export Promotion Council’s Export House later in November 2025, bringing together multiple federal institutions under one coordinating structure. A second plenary held in Abuja in January 2026 consolidated joint work plans before the various technical working groups moved into implementation. The programme’s international engagement has also accelerated.
In November last year, Nigeria officially launched the Nigeria Talent Accelerator Network (NTAN) in partnership with the World Economic Forum, formally joining the WEF Global Accelerators Network. The initiative is co-chaired by the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, the Federal Ministry of Education, and Flour Mills of Nigeria, alongside private sector partners, creating an alliance between government and the private sector to strengthen workforce competitiveness.
Joining the global accelerator network provides Nigeria with more than international recognition. The World Economic Forum partnership gives Nigeria access to global labour market intelligence, international collaboration and evidence-based workforce planning. As demand for digital services becomes increasingly global, countries that understand future skills requirements will be better positioned to supply talent into those markets.
That global outlook has also influenced NATEP’s domestic policy reforms.
One of its most significant initiatives is the development of a National Outsourcing Policy. A zero draft was submitted to the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment in March for inter-ministerial review, establishing a comprehensive policy framework for outsourcing and globally delivered services.
The outsourcing sector has enormous potential to create export jobs and generate foreign exchange. A formal policy provides clarity for investors, strengthens confidence in Nigeria’s outsourcing ecosystem and establishes the governance standards needed to compete internationally.
Beyond governance, NATEP has spent much of the past year building the technical architecture needed to support long-term execution.
Its Demand Technical Working Group has adopted formal work plans, governance structures and labour market intelligence systems. The Supply Technical Working Group is validating learner journeys, reviewed unit economics and consolidated implementation plans designed to produce skilled workers at scale.
Meanwhile, the Enabling Environment Technical Working Group has completed diagnostic assessments, adopted World Trade Organization and General Agreement on Trade in Services taxonomy standards and prioritised regulatory reforms across five sectors with the highest export potential: Software and Software-as-a-Service, Data and Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, Fintech, and Business Process Outsourcing and IT-enabled Services.
According to NATEP, those workstreams demonstrate that the programme is moving beyond policy announcements into implementation. The programme is also investing in the infrastructure needed to support globally delivered digital services.
NATEP has activated partnerships with Itana and Alaro City to develop digitally enabled infrastructure within special economic zones capable of supporting remote service delivery to international clients. The roadmap describes the initiative as an effort to establish scalable infrastructure for digital exports rather than relying solely on workforce development.
Nigeria has also become a country partner in the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Survey, allowing local business leaders to contribute directly to global labour market assessments and ensuring Nigeria’s evolving skills landscape is reflected in international workforce benchmarks. At the same time, NATEP is collaborating with the Global Business Services sector to align the Nigeria Outsourcing Association with international best practice, another step aimed at strengthening investor confidence in the country’s services export ecosystem.
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The first year of NATEP’s relaunch has been less about headline announcements than about building institutions capable of supporting long-term economic transformation.
The progress achieved over the past year brings Nigeria closer to its strategic objectives of enabling one million direct export-linked jobs, supporting millions more indirect jobs, attracting significant investment into the sector and equipping Nigerians with globally recognised skills and certifications.
“The next phase is implementation at scale. The governance structures are being put in place, the partnerships are expanding and the policy foundations are taking shape. Our focus now is converting those foundations into jobs, investment, exports and measurable economic value,” NATEP said in a statement.
If successful, the strategy could reshape how Nigeria competes globally. Rather than relying primarily on commodity exports, policymakers are betting that knowledge-intensive services, delivered digitally across borders, can become a new source of foreign exchange, investment and employment in an increasingly digital global economy.
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