Nigeria’s $11billion Annual Import Bill: Doomsday Looms!

Nigeria is a nation endowed with vast natural resources which could be gainfully harnessed to explore the nation’s potentials for the export of agriculture and solid minerals yet Nigeria’s export is dominated by crude oil whilst its annual import bill is around $11billion.

This outrageous figure makes one begin to wonder how long the economy of the nation could endure before doomsday arrives.

Yes, export is the solution as it has been proven that a rise in export stimulates an increased aggregate economic growth and development. However, there are more questions like; what is available to be exported? Do we have ports configured for exports? Where are the consolidation centres? Is there guaranteed access to credit and access to market?

Increased export especially for the non-oil sector creates employment, raises income and mitigates rural urban migration and Nigerian yams, cassava, cocoyam, shear nut, melon seeds, sorghum and kola nuts are rated as the best in the world. The nation’s cashew nuts, okra, palm kernel, cocoa beans, groundnuts, palm oil, plantains, sesame seed, pineapple, chilies and pepper, mangoes, mangos teens, and guavas are all ranked in the top 10 around the world.

The challenges facing export are numerous; they include infrastructural constraints, limited local content, low value added to products, financing constraints, inefficient implementation of export incentives and support programmes, over regulation of the non-oil export sector, underdeveloped regional and sub-regional markets, policy instability, capital flight marketing and pricing problems.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) Barr. Hassan Bello lamented at the poor state of non-oil exports even as he revealed that the Shippers’ Council, Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM) and several other strategic organizations were set to organize a two-day event to address these challenges.

According to Hassan Bello, the event which is proposed to hold in October would have about five ministers in attendance as they brainstorm in order to change the fortunes of the country by improving non-oil exports.

“This $11billion import bill means that we are on the part of destruction. If we agree to export, where are the items to export? When our farmers have perishable item, there are no places to refrigerate at the ports” Bello said.

While some exporters have fears that Nigerian agricultural export produce was facing some level of rejection internationally, Hassan Bello explained ports that the reason many exporters have their containers returned was because the exporters weren’t aware of the globally accepted standards and the export processes.

Some basic infrastructure would need to be provided, such the creation of roads, efficient rail systems and waterways to ensure that the challenges facing agricultural exporters are reduced. There is also a dire need for provision of cold storage facilities at airports and seaports to ensure that items which need to be kept in a cold facility do not get damaged as a result of the lack of cold storage facilities. The government should also consider creating export warehouses close to the ports to enable exporters easily convey their products from the warehouses to the port for export.

Considering the tough economic times the nation is facing as a result of the persistent devaluation of the naira, there isn’t a better time to preach the gospel of export than now.