Zenith Bank's 10th Seminar Focuses on Boosting Non-Oil Exports for Economic Growth

Zenith Bank Plc recently hosted its 10th International Trade Seminar on Non-Oil Export, marking a decade of championing economic diversification in Nigeria. The virtual event convened policymakers, regulators, exporters, manufacturers, investors, and development partners to explore avenues for increasing Nigeria's global earnings from its non-oil exports.

“

Our theme, ‘Unlocking Value and Harnessing Growth’, is not just a slogan. It speaks to the opportunities before us and the need to translate our collective efforts into sustainable economic value.

Under the theme "Unlocking Value and Harnessing Growth," the seminar delved into strategies for transitioning Nigeria from exporting raw commodities to developing competitive value chains. Key areas of discussion included strengthening trade infrastructure, enhancing financing mechanisms, and deepening the non-oil sector's contribution to sustainable economic growth.

Dame (Dr.) Adaora Umeoji, Group Managing Director/CEO of Zenith Bank Plc, acknowledged the bank's founder, Dr. Jim Ovia, for initiating the seminar in 2015. She urged participants to convert Nigeria's improving export figures into lasting economic value. Umeoji noted that Nigeria's non-oil exports reached a record $6.1 billion in 2025, an 11.5 percent increase from $5.46 billion in 2024, and a substantial leap from $612 million a decade prior. Zenith Bank's collaboration with the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat and integration with the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System were highlighted as facilitators of cross-border business.

“

Wherever our exporters need to reach, Zenith Bank will reach with them.

Umeoji also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for structural reforms creating a more favorable business environment and the Central Bank of Nigeria, under Governor Olayemi Cardoso, for reforms enhancing foreign exchange stability and market confidence. She stressed the importance of accelerating growth by increasing local value addition and exporting finished products rather than raw materials.

“

As we build on the progress recorded so far, it is important that, as a nation, we accelerate growth by creating more value locally and exporting finished products, rather than just raw materials.

Keynote speaker Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, called for deeper trade and investment reforms, an improved export environment, and broader market access. She emphasized the shift in focus from simply exporting more to retaining more value within Nigeria from all exports. The Ministry's objective, she stated, is to foster competitive domestic production and processing, connect Nigerian businesses to larger markets, and ensure the necessary financing, infrastructure, and trade systems are in place.

“

The question before us now is not simply how to export more, but how to retain more value in Nigeria from everything we export.