•Hails restriction on shea nut export, reaffirms commitment to SMEs funding, mentorship

James Emejo in Abuja

Managing Director/Chief Executive, Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM), Mr. Abubakar Abba Bello, yesterday disclosed that the bank disbursed about N420 billion to non-oil exporters at concessionary, single-digit interest rate of nine per cent.
Bello spoke at an interactive session with All Progressives Congress (APC) youth members on financing SMEs’ non-oil export activities, in Abuja.
Bello also said over 12,000 direct jobs had been created through the funding intervention to the subsector.
He said a total of N137 billion, out of the N150 billion Export Development Fund (EDF), had so far been released to NEXIM by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
In 2018, the central bank introduced the N150 billion EDF – a debenture to support non-oil exports – with the funds channelled to NEXIM for distribution to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
The NEXIM managing director pointed out that the bank had moved beyond the EDF, stating that NEXIM’s total assets currently stood at about N430 billion, all of which was deployed to financing exporters.
He said all lending by the bank followed same conditions as that of EDF.
Bello said the federal government’s recent six-month ban on shea nut exports was a strategic step to support local processors and reduce production costs.
He stated that though the country supplied 40–60 per cent of global shea, it lacked industrial processing plants until 2018.
He said, “When we came on board in 2018, not one industrial plant was processing shea in Nigeria.
“Since then, we’ve financed four, located in Ogun, Kano, and two in Niger State, all now in production.”
According to him, a newly commissioned plant in Niger State had struggled to source raw shea due to competition from long-established foreign buyers who moved the product to neighbouring countries for processing.
Bello said, “The export ban guarantees a stable supply chain for these plants and reduces input costs. I believe we’ll now have excess shea for local processing.”
While urging the government to consider extending the suspension to one year to encourage further investment in domestic value addition, Bello called for a wider policy to discourage the export of raw agricultural products.
He said, “Let’s not stop at shea. We should begin phasing out the export of unprocessed commodities across other agricultural value chains. This is how we keep jobs and wealth at home.”
He emphasised the need for continuity and regular engagement, not just one-off events, and adding that the bank plans to organise quarterly encounters going forward.
He also promised an open-door policy to exporters, particularly SMEs, adding that as a trade facilitation agency, it is ready to assist in whatever capacity to make their export ambitions a reality.
Bello said the bank aimed to support service exports, including event planning, digital outsourcing, particularly call centres, accounting, and legal services.
He said, “If foreign exchange inflows are assured, NEXIM will finance service contracts abroad.”
Bello encouraged Nigerian businesses to participate in African infrastructure projects, stressing that the bank supports cross-border trade and wants to help Nigerian companies expand into Africa.
He said the bank will also support exporters in niche or unconventional sectors.
Bello said, “NEXIM is investing in youth training and partnerships to build export capacity.”
He reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to boost the capacity of the services industry to export.
According to him, services constitute about 55 per cent of the country’s GDP, and remain the biggest sector of the economy.

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