Nigeria recorded a record $6.1 billion in non oil export earnings in 2025, as cocoa, urea, cashew, sesame, gold and other locally produced goods reached buyers across 120 countries.
The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) said the figure, equivalent to roughly N9.3 trillion using the conversion in the information provided, represents an 11.5 per cent increase from the $5.46 billion recorded in 2024. It is the highest value of formally documented non oil exports recorded by the council since its establishment.
Brandspur Banking News Desk reports that the growth was accompanied by a rise in export volumes, which reached 8.02 million metric tonnes in 2025, up 10 per cent from 7.29 million metric tonnes a year earlier. Nigerian exporters shipped 281 non oil products to 120 countries, underlining the expanding reach of goods produced outside the oil sector.
The Netherlands emerged as the largest destination by value, accounting for 17.53 per cent of non oil exports, followed by Brazil at 10.35 per cent and India at 7.63 per cent. Exports to the Netherlands increased by 32.46 per cent, driven in part by cocoa beans, cocoa butter and sesame seeds, while exports to Brazil rose by 19.07 per cent.
The range of products in the export basket is also important. Beyond raw agricultural commodities, Nigeria shipped processed and semi processed goods, industrial inputs and solid minerals. Among the leading products were cocoa and its derivatives, urea fertiliser, cashew nuts, sesame seeds, gold doré, aluminium and copper ingots, soybeans and rubber.
For Nigerian farmers and businesses, the figures represent more than a headline about foreign exchange. Every shipment creates a link between local production and international demand, potentially opening markets for farmers, processors, miners, manufacturers, transporters, logistics operators and other businesses involved in getting Nigerian goods to overseas buyers.
Cocoa provides a useful example. Rising shipments of cocoa beans and processed cocoa products show that Nigeria is not relying entirely on crude oil to earn dollars from international trade. Cashew, sesame and other agricultural commodities are similarly finding buyers outside the country.
The solid minerals sector is also becoming part of that picture. Gold doré, aluminium, copper and other mineral products featured among the export categories, showing how Nigeria’s resource base extends well beyond petroleum.
Still, the record comes with an important qualification. The $6.1 billion figure covers formal, documented non oil trade captured by the NEPC. Executive Director Nonye Ayeni has acknowledged that a significant volume of Nigerian exports still moves informally through the country’s borders and is therefore not fully reflected in the official numbers. The council is working with the National Bureau of Statistics and the Central Bank of Nigeria to improve the capture of such trade.
That gap matters because the formal figures may not tell the entire story of Nigeria’s export economy. At the same time, it means the official record provides a clearer baseline from which future growth can be measured.
Nigeria’s regional trade picture has also changed. Exports to ECOWAS countries were affected by the withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from the regional bloc. NEPC said 1.23 million metric tonnes of goods, worth $271.26 million, went to ECOWAS markets in 2025, representing 4.46 per cent of total non oil export value.
The performance is nevertheless significant for an economy that has spent decades depending heavily on crude oil for foreign exchange. A larger non oil export base can provide additional sources of dollar earnings and reduce the extent to which the country’s external position is tied to movements in international oil prices.
The Federal Government has presented the figures as evidence of progress under President Bola Tinubu’s economic diversification agenda. NEPC linked the performance to export support programmes, trade policies, improved documentation and efforts to strengthen market access.
But maintaining the momentum will require more than celebrating a record year. Exporters still face challenges involving standards, certification, logistics, infrastructure, finance and access to international markets. These issues can determine whether a Nigerian product makes it successfully onto a foreign shelf or is rejected at the border.
This is particularly relevant for agricultural exporters. NEPC and the International Trade Centre have been working on sanitary and phytosanitary compliance in value chains such as sesame and cowpea because failures to meet international standards can result in rejected shipments and lost earnings. The council says coordination with agencies including the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, NAFDAC and the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service has already helped reduce export rejections.
The next challenge, therefore, is to turn a record into a pattern. More production, better processing, stronger certification and cheaper logistics could help Nigerian exporters capture a larger share of global markets and retain more value at home.
For now, the $6.1 billion milestone offers evidence that Nigeria’s export economy is becoming broader. Oil remains dominant, but 281 non oil products reaching 120 countries show that the country’s foreign exchange story is no longer being written entirely by crude oil.
