Nigeria’s non-oil exports reached a total of $1.791 billion in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 24.75% increase compared to the $1.436 billion recorded during the same period in 2024.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported the figure, citing the Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) during a briefing in Abuja on Monday.

Speaking at the presentation of the Q1 Non-Oil Export Performance Report, the Executive Director and CEO of NEPC, Dr. Nonye Ayeni, said the growth signals real momentum in Nigeria’s economic diversification push.

“In the first quarter of 2025, a total of 197 distinct products were exported,” she said.

“This reflects an increase compared to 162 products recorded in Q1 2024. These products range from manufactured and semi-processed goods to industrial extracts and agricultural commodities.”

The volume of exports also rose sharply to 2.416 million metric tonnes, a 243.44% increase over the 1.937 million metric tonnes recorded in Q1 2024.

Ayeni noted that the rise demonstrates how stakeholders are beginning to fully tap into the opportunities within the non-oil export sector.

Cocoa and its byproducts, such as cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, and cocoa cake, led the pack, followed by urea/fertiliser and cashew nuts.

Based on data from Pre-shipment Inspection Agents (PIAs), cocoa beans alone accounted for 45.02% of the total non-oil export value, while fertiliser made up 19.32%, and cashew contributed 5.81%.

Leading the corporate export chart were Indorama Eleme Fertiliser and Chemical Ltd with 12.07% of total export share and Starlink Global and Ideal Ltd with 10.00%, driven by their large-scale shipments of fertiliser and cocoa products.

On regional performance, Ayeni disclosed that 10 ECOWAS member states imported Nigerian non-oil products worth $63.060 million in Q1 2025, a 223.10% increase from the $19.517 million recorded in Q1 2024.

Exports to other African countries stood at $32.732 million, accounting for 1.83% of the total.

Earlier in January, the NEPC had reported the highest non-oil export value in its 49-year history, with annual exports jumping from $4.517 billion in 2023 to $5.456 billion in 2024, a 20.77% year-on-year increase.

Ayeni reaffirmed that the NEPC’s ongoing work, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda to scale non-oil exports and reduce Nigeria’s overdependence on crude oil revenues.

“Stakeholders are increasingly taking advantage of the vast potential and opportunities in the non-oil sector,” she said.

“The Council’s strategy is geared towards building a more sustainable, export-driven economy.”