By Becky Momodu
The Federal Government has charged the governing boards of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) and the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) to translate investor interest into actual investments and boost non-oil exports, following an increase in earnings to $6.1 billion in 2025.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, gave the charge during the inauguration of the NIPC Governing Council and NEPC Governing Board held on October 27, 2026.
Oduwole disclosed that Nigeria’s formally documented non-oil export earnings rose by 11.5 per cent from $5.46 billion in 2024 to $6.1 billion in 2025, while export volumes increased from 7.29 million to 8.02 million metric tonnes.
She added that Nigeria exported 281 non-oil products to 120 countries, with cocoa beans, urea, cashew nuts and sesame seeds among the leading commodities.
The minister urged the newly inaugurated boards to build on the progress by strengthening local processing, improving product quality, meeting international standards and expanding access to global markets.
She also highlighted the Nigeria–East and Southern Africa Air Cargo Corridor, developed in partnership with Uganda Airlines and RwandAir, as an initiative aimed at addressing logistics challenges and improving the competitiveness of Nigerian exports.
At the inauguration of the 16-member NIPC Governing Council, Oduwole called for stronger investment facilitation, improved services at the One-Stop Investment Centre and the removal of business bottlenecks that discourage investors.
She identified manufacturing, solid minerals, energy and technology infrastructure as key sectors with investment opportunities, stressing the need for closer collaboration with state governments and improved support for existing investors to encourage business expansion and reinvestment.
The Minister further charged both boards to establish measurable performance targets focused on actual investments realised, export orders secured, new markets accessed, businesses expanded and jobs created.
She emphasised the importance of supporting women-owned and youth-led enterprises while strengthening institutional collaboration and accountability.
The Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr. Chris Osa Isokpunwu, described the appointments as timely, urging the boards to prioritise effective governance, reliable performance data and practical solutions to investment and export challenges.
He said their success should be measured by tangible economic outcomes, including completed export shipments, foreign exchange earnings, technology transfer and employment generation.
In her acceptance remarks, the NIPC Governing Council Chairperson, Mrs. Temitope Kola-Oyenenyi, pledged to strengthen investor confidence, improve governance and ensure that investment commitments translate into viable projects.
Similarly, the NEPC Governing Board Chairman, Alhaji Muhammed Munir Ja’afaru, OFR, mni, assured that the board would deploy its collective experience to advance the council’s mandate.
The Federal Government said the inaugurations reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening investment promotion and export development as drivers of industrialisation, economic diversification and inclusive growth under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
