Despite her economic struggles, Nigeria’s international trade value rose by 179.3% to hit a historic N196.94 trillion.
The feat was revealed in the Nigeria Customs Service report for 2024 obtained by The Nigerian Economy on Tuesday.
The report showed that the total trade value handled by the Customs in 2024 amounted to ₦196.94 trillion, compared to ₦70.50 trillion in 2023, representing a 179.3% increase.
The report further showed that the trade figure was made up of a total export value of ₦136.65 trillion and N60.29 trillion imports.
The country’s exportations in 2024 rose significantly from ₦42.77 trillion in 2023 to N136.65 trillion, marking a 219.5% increase and a whopping increase of 234% in mass, while importations also rose by 117.4% from ₦27.74 trillion in 2023 to N60.29 trillion in 2024.
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, who presented the report on Tuesday said the substantial growth in trade value, achieved with fewer but more valuable transactions, was evident of the increasing sophistication of Nigeria’s international trade and the effectiveness of the country’s trade facilitation measures.
He said: “At the beginning of 2024, the Service made several commitments towards modernizing our operations and enhancing service delivery. Despite our impressive revenue performance, we remained conscious of the need to strike a balance between revenue collection and trade facilitation. This balance was evident in our commitments at the beginning of the year and also served as a milestone for gauging performance throughout 2024. They were further reiterated during the Comptroller-General of Customs Conference held later in the year.
“The trade performance data for 2024 reflects significant growth in trade value despite global economic headwinds. The Service processed imports with a Cost, Insurance, and Freight (CIF) value of ₦60.29 trillion in 2024, representing a remarkable 117.4% increase from ₦27.74 trillion in 2023. This was achieved through 1,262,988 import transactions, handling a total mass of 15.35 billion kilograms. The higher value recorded despite an 8.2% decrease in transaction volume from the previous year’s 1,376,514 transactions indicates a shift towards higher-value goods in our import trade portfolio.
“Our export trade performance was equally impressive, with the total CIF value rising significantly to ₦136.65 trillion in 2024 from ₦42.77 trillion in 2023, marking a 219.5% increase. While the number of export transactions remained relatively stable at 38,199 compared to 38,294 in 2023, we witnessed a substantial increase in export volume, processing 12.35 billion kilograms in 2024 compared to 3.70 billion kilograms in 2023. This 234% increase in export mass, coupled with the higher value, indicates a robust growth in our export trade and suggests increasing competitiveness of Nigerian products in the international market.”
The Customs boss maintained that in line with the Service’s pledge to adopt global best practices in trade facilitation, improve operational excellence, and enhance security, the Service successfully implemented various measures to enhance operational efficiency through modern procedures enabled by the new NCS Act.
In the area of support for small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) and export trade facilitation, Adeniyi said in recognition of the opportunities presented by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), the Customs implemented various trade facilitation initiatives to support SMEs and exporters. These efforts, he said, contributed significantly to the robust participation of Nigerian brands at the prestigious Biashara Afrika forum in Kigali in October 2024.
“It was particularly gratifying that our innovative approaches received recognition from the AfCFTA Secretariat, culminating in an invitation to share Nigeria’s experience at the forum,” he said.
