NEXIM Bank boss predicts South-South as emerging hub for export diversification

By Ozioruva Aliu

BENIN CITY – THE Managing Director/Chief Executive, Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM Bank), Abba Bello, on Wednesday said with its access to infrastructure like ports and proximity to export corridors, the South-South region is emerging as a strategic hub for export diversification.

He stated this at the opening session of a one-day NEXIM SME Export Finance Sensitisation Forum which was held in Benin City.

Represented by the Head, Akure Regional Office of the bank, Mr. Flaring Tianiyu, Bello noted that there is no doubt that, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises are the backbone of every economy.

He said “From successful agro-processing clusters in oil palm, cassava, cocoa, rubber and solid minerals projects in Edo, Delta, Akwa Ibom and Cross River, to the success recorded in petro-chemical industries in Rivers, the region offers immense potential for trade.

“Its industrial hubs are home to MSMEs along value chains that are producing high-quality food products, chemicals, building materials and servicing oil companies, and providing the products and services that will shape Nigeria’s non-oil export future.

“We firmly belief that with improved access to finance, robust infrastructure, and effective trade facilitation, south south region will continue to be a strong contributor to Nigeria’s non-oil export growth”, he affirmed.

“In Nigeria there are over 41 million MSMEs, which account for about 96.9% of registered businesses, contributing nearly 48% to GDP, while employing approximately 87.9% of our labour force. Despite their contributions to the economy, these MSMEs continue to face a different / myriad of challenges”.

He listed some of the challenges to include access to affordable finance, poor market access, lack of infrastructure, and inadequate skills/capacity gaps, making it hard for many to survive beyond five years of their existence, adding that it was for this reason that NEXIM Bank is working with partners such as GIZ, to address these challenges through initiatives like the EXCEL Programme.

He urged the participants to engage fully in the discussions, ask questions, share experiences, and take full advantage of the resources available.

In a speech, GIZ Trade Advisor, Raymond Dangana, stated that the benefit of exporting formally was quite higher than informal export, adding that the major objective of the event was to sensitize participants on export financing.

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