AfCFTA: Africa Leads Nigeria’s Export Markets 

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) indicate a major shift in Nigeria’s trade dynamics, with Africa emerging as the country’s largest export destination in 2024, thanks to the implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) according to a report by Nairametrics.

The NBS data highlights a significant trade surplus driven by robust exports to the African continent noting that Nigeria’s total exports for the year stood at N59.44 trillion [USD38.9 billion], surpassing total imports of N37.59 trillion [USD24.6 billion] resulting in a trade surplus of N21.85 trillion [USD14.3 billion].

This positive trade balance indicates that Nigeria continues to earn more from its exports than it spends on imports, reinforcing the country’s position as a key exporter in global trade.

While major trading partners such as China, India, the United States, and Spain remained pivotal to Nigeria’s trade portfolio, Africa collectively took the lead as Nigeria’s largest regional export market, accounting for N8.74 trillion [USD5.7 billion] in exports.

In Quarter 4 of 2024, Nigeria’s exports to Africa stood at N2,042.06 billion [USD1.3 million] or 10.20% of the total exports; out of which, goods exported to ECOWAS countries were valued at N1,175.44 billion [USD769,921] or 57.56% of the total exports to Africa, according to NBS.

Africa Leads Nigeria’s Export Markets 

For the first time, Africa has surpassed Europe and Asia as the top regional destination for Nigerian exports, driven by growing intra-African trade and the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

In contrast, in 2023, Africa’s total trade value with Nigeria stood at N3.71 trillion [USD2.4 billion], falling slightly behind the Netherlands’ N4.51 trillion [USD2.9 billion]. This growth in trade within Africa highlights the increasing importance of regional markets and the potential for Nigeria to further expand its footprint within the continent.

Analysis of the NBS data reveals that Nigeria’s exports to Africa were mainly to South Africa with N761.95 billion [USD499 million], Ivory Coast with goods valued at N756.37 billion [495 million], Senegal Republic with N236.87 billion [USD155 million], Cameroon with N54.02 billion [USD35 million], and Togo with N47.97 billion [USD31 million] altogether representing 90.95% of exports to Africa.

Key Export Drivers 

Analysis by commodities showed that the main commodities exported to African countries in Quarter 4 of 2024 were Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals valued at N1,628.85 billion [USD1 million] accounting for 79.77% of total exports to Africa and Electrical energy with N75.66 billion [USD49.5 million] or 3.71%.

Others were Dredgers with N73.99 billion [USD48.5 million] or 3.62%, Urea, whether or not in aqueous solution N40.34 billion [USD26.4 billion] or 1.98%, and Cigarettes containing tobacco with N32.50 billion [USD21.3 million] or 1.59%. The top five products accounted for 90.66% of total exports to Africa.

The demand for Nigerian energy resources remained strong, with Spain, France, and the Netherlands leading European demand for crude oil and gas. Meanwhile, India and the USA played key roles in Nigeria’s energy and manufacturing export markets, while China continued to be a major destination for produce exports.

Implications for Nigeria’s Economy 

The rise of Africa as Nigeria’s leading export market demonstrates the growing influence of intra-African trade and the potential for Nigeria to further leverage regional partnerships. With the AfCFTA in effect, Nigerian businesses have greater access to a vast market, reducing dependency on Western economies.

It would be recalled that despite being Africa’s biggest economy, Nigeria was very slow in signing the AfCFTA Agreement which it eventually did in July 2019 over a year since the agreement was presented to African Heads of State and Government in May 2018 at Kigali, Rwanda. After signing the AfCFTA it took Nigeria another year for Nigeria to ratify the agreement which it did after 15 months in November 2020.

A year later, Nigeria hosted a series of consultations with business stakeholders involved in trade in goods and services, as part of wider consultations that culminated in the development of a national strategy for implementing the AfCFTA.

A version of this report was originally published on Nairametrics