NEPC seeks stakeholders’ support to develop, promote roadmap for non-oil exports

The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has reiterated its commitment to collaborate with stakeholders in the country towards developing and promoting the non-oil export sector to develop roadmap for export strategy.

The state coordinator of NEPC in Ondo State, Benedict Itegbe, stated this during the second NEPC annual non-oil export stakeholder conference,  with the title Roadmap for Ondo 10-year state export strategy.’

Itegbe commended the state for being at the forefront and taking a pioneering role in facilitating a grassroot approach to the development of trade policy from the subnational to the national level.

He said “we are incorporating this conversation about the state export trading 10 years profile in Ondo State, engaging all the stakeholders, federal and state government to see how to streamline the strategy and the roadmap with the national priorities that merge from the ministerial retreat in Abuja.

“This is to ensure that there is more synergy across Federal Government, state facilitators and state government facilitators.

“We are also outlining our NEPC Akure programme for 2024 and giving the stakeholders opportunity to contribute to the agenda for the year.”

According to him, “This is an innovation, it is novel, this makes the strategy belong to the state, so NEPC wants to be proactive to engage stakeholders to be sensitive to the considerations.

He said “NEPC has an institutional committee at the state level in every state in Nigeria, which is called the state committee on export promotion. The committee includes other MBAs like  Central Bank of Nigeria, NIRSAL, NEXIM, customs, SMEDAN.”

The function of that committee, according to him, is to increase collaboration and synergy among government agencies in a manner that is favourable for a state, identifying a priority product for the state and supporting the state in having a trade policy.

“We have to say that Ondo State is at the last mile in having a trade policy document, so we have been doing well in that direction and I hope that we will be able to work on the specific roadmap and project, how to embrace sustainability and how to look at alternative finance to support government project, because we want to grow our competency in public/private partnership which is the way forward for the development of export strategy project,” he said.

“New infrastructures will come to bear, policy instruments will also be put in place and there will be a superior business way that will enable environment for people that want to go into the export business.

We believe that with the agenda we set, we will see a dramatic increase in practitioners in SMEs in non-oil export, the creation of new jobs and sustainable wealth for the economy.

Speaking, the Director, Ondo State Development and Investment Promotion Agency (ONDIPA) Adeola Richard Alonge said the state government is committed to the need to develop the non oil sector of the state.

He said this becomes necessary because the state’s focus is gradually diversifying from the oil to the non oil, saying “we need the blueprint of the state that will champion stakeholders on what next should be done to get to the level of acceptance on international business and the strategic document that was prepared.

The Ondo state export strategy document will enable us have a focus and a roadmap on how to promote export business in Ondo state”

He disclosed that the Ministry of Commerce and Industry is dedicated to the promotion of export business and there are a lot of incentives that are available in the state for exporters, noting that there is a collaboration between the state government and the shippers council, the Nigeria customs and standard organization of Nigeria and NAFDAC.

He said, “This is to ensure that every relevant documentation that stakeholders needed for them to be able to package their export business is perfectly executed. So the state government is standing in the gap being an interface between the exporters and the regulatory agencies of government so that there will now be documentation of the expiration business.

“The advantages are enormous, revenue generation, job creation, skill acquisition and development technology transfer and many more, the advantages can not be emphasized, such as exposure to the international market and also trying to create a level playing ground for those that are into export trading.

“We want to compete with the outside world, made in Nigeria product must prioritised, we want people to develop their businesses and trade as to international business and export trade”

The South West Coordinator for the Federal Ministry of Research, Oshodi, Deji Oyediran, said the conference is to activate all stakeholders that have their role to play in bringing about how their product can go out of the country because it earns more money for them and it encourages them to look beyond our shores I whatever they do.

‘The contribution of SMEs to the GDP of the state is insignificant and these are the factors that we are identifying here and they have a 10-year roadmap which is factored out and NEPC makes us know that it is a model that is being tried in the state.

“The expectation is that in the course of the next three to five years, they should be a good influence on the state GDP through the contribution of the SMEs and other multiple effects generally.

“So there would be a general impact on livelihood for those at the grassroot, federal government level and those at the state level.”