Nigeria is placing itself at the heart of Africa’s most ambitious economic integration project: the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). During the first Public-Private-Press Summit in Abuja, the country reaffirmed its commitment to driving the full implementation of AfCFTA so it can leverage access to a $3.4 trillion continental market.
At the summit, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, Nigeria’s Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment, emphasized the urgency of collaboration among government, businesses, and the media. She stressed that these three pillars must align if Nigeria is to maximise the benefits of deeper intra-African trade. She noted that “Africa retains more value when trading within the continent,” underlining her conviction that Nigeria could be a major beneficiary of this integration.
One critical enabler of this ambition is the financing commitment from Afreximbank: $40 billion has been pledged by 2026 to support industrialisation, value addition, and trade across Africa. That means more capital for Nigerian manufacturers, farmers, and exporters to scale up and compete more strongly within Africa.
Dr. Oduwole described the AfCFTA as one of the world’s most ambitious economic integration projects, given its coverage of a 1.4 billion-strong, predominantly young, entrepreneurial population. She argued that Nigeria’s economic goals, which include diversification, export growth, and industrial development, are deeply tied to the success of this continental initiative.
She also noted Nigeria’s historical leadership in African integration, pointing back to the Lagos Plan of Action and the Abuja Treaty. She highlighted several 2025 milestones: tariff concessions on AfCFTA-eligible goods, progress in digital trade, better customs capacity, new air cargo routes for exports, and a market intelligence platform for Nigerian exporters.
Moving forward, she said, “Government institutions will adopt a performance barometer, the private sector will define pillars of Nigeria’s AfCFTA market strategy, and the media will ensure accurate and constructive national communication.” She encouraged a united effort: “one African market that is made, powered and led by Nigeria.”
In addition, Nigeria is streamlining export logistics. Through a collaboration with Uganda Airlines, the Nigeria Customs Service, and UNDP, it has established a dedicated air-cargo corridor to East and Southern Africa, cutting cargo costs by 50–75 percent. This significantly reduces the cost and time for Nigerian goods to reach other African markets.
Looking ahead, Nigeria plans to host the second AfCFTA Digital Trade Forum in Lagos in 2026 and will host the Intra-African Trade Fair in 2027.
On the services front, Nigeria submitted its Schedule of Specific Commitments for Trade in Services in October, paving the way for Nigerian service providers to expand across the continent under favorable terms starting in 2026. This is particularly important since in 2024, Nigeria’s trade in services was $16.49 billion, but only 20 percent was exported, and services made up less than 10 percent of its export base. The federal executive council also approved Nigeria’s ratification of the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade.
Dr. Oduwole urged the country to shift its export mix toward higher-value processed goods and significantly increase services exports. She said this transformation depends on strong cooperation between government, industry, and the media.
Afreximbank’s president, Dr. George Elombi, echoed the call. He affirmed the bank’s alignment with the AfCFTA’s vision, highlighting its initiatives to support manufacturing, SMEs, and value-addition across Africa. Elombi disclosed plans to funnel more funds into sectors like pharmaceuticals and manufacturing, while also backing the establishment of intra-African maritime routes and a continent-wide transit-guarantee digital platform to ease cross-border trade.
He pointed out, however, that infrastructure bottlenecks, especially in transportation, customs, and market intelligence, remain a major hurdle to Africa’s full economic integration. Afreximbank aims to tackle these challenges head-on, ensuring that goods can move more seamlessly “from factory floors to regional markets.”
In his words, Nigeria, as Africa’s largest economy, “has both an obligation and an opportunity to lead the implementation of the AfCFTA.” By doing so, it could help shape a more unified, prosperous, and self-reliant African economic bloc.
By leading AfCFTA’s implementation, Nigeria could boost intra-African exports, attract Foreign Direct Investment, and diversify away from oil. The country’s manufacturing and service sectors stand to grow, creating potentially over 13 million jobs and increasing GDP and external reserves, according to projections.
