The Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM) has urged South-South leaders, businesses and stakeholders in the region to take advantage of the enormous non-oil resources to boost export earnings, create more jobs, and promote economic growth across the region.
NEXIM observed that apart from crude oil, which is its major resources, the South-South geopolitical zone has other resources it could develop for export across many sectors including, agricultural products, solid minerals, manufacturing and services, particularly hospitality and tourism.
Decrying the situation in his welcome speech at the Exporter Enlightenment Forum for the South-South Geopolitical Zone, which held in Asaba, Delta State, last week, Abba Bello, managing director/CEO, NEXIM Bank, noted that despite its enormous non-oil resources, the region had not been able to take advantage of them to boost its export earnings and further its economic growth.
“Our analysis, however, shows that the South-South had not fully benefited optimal from NEXIM’s intervention programme, hence the need for this Exporter Enlightenment Forum,” he said on the rationale for the forum.
Speaking further at the forum, which held on the theme, ”Maximising Export Potentials in the South-South Region for Economic Growth,” Bello explained that the bank had found it necessary to organise the forum in order to bring to fore the non-oil resources of the South-south region towards attracting investment and accelerating the growth and development of the region.
According to Bello, sustained investments in the non-oil sector in the region would help in reducing the country’s over dependence on the crude oil sector, which currently contributes about 70 percent of government revenues and 95 percent of export revenues.
As well, such investments for him would save the country from the undue exposure to the volatility in the global oil market.
“While the recent episode of oil price slump, which triggered economic recession in Nigeria from 2016 to 2017 is still fresh in our memory, unfolding developments suggest that our country may once again be faced with oil revenue volatility in the current year, given the outbreak of coronavirus in China and trade war between major global players is expected to impact negatively on global oil demand, amongst other factors”, he said.
He called on exporters in the region to take advantage NEXIM’s State Export Development Programme, which earmarked at least N1 billion per state towards promoting regional industrialisation and economic diversification at the state levels.
Aside regional trade within the country, the NEXIM boss said South-South region businesses and exported can boost their earnings by engaging in West African and continental trades, especially now the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), sets to take off in July this year.
“The free trade area, which creates a single market of about 1.2 billion people and a combined GDP of about $3.5 trillion will provide enormous trading opportunities for our SMEs and position Nigeria to attract investments, particularly within the context of the regional and global value chains. I will therefore expect every state here present to use the opportunity of this event to highlight their economic potentials towards attracting investments, particularly into the non-oil export sectors,” he urged.
In line with its strategic plan for 2018-2022, the bank, according to him, has also allocated at least 60 percent of its intervention to support intra-African trade and promoting several key initiatives targeted at facilitating regional trade.
The forum, offered veritable platform for government, corporate organisations, private sector and other stakeholders to interact on more practical ways of collaborating to harness the enormous non-oil resources of the region, while NEXIM offered to help where necessary.
However, the forum is a flagship event of the bank that is aimed at promoting non-oil export development in Nigeria through capacity building and dissemination of pertinent trade and market information among stakeholders and the key players in the export value chain.
