Nigeria’s non-oil exports earnings fell by 24 per cent, year-on-year, YoY, to $4.46 billion in nine months to September 30th, 2023, defying various efforts of the government to enhance this critical source of foreign exchange. The figure was $5.88 billion in the corresponding period of 2022.
While the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, blamed the decline on lower commodity prices in the global market, experts however, attributed the decline to cancellation of non-oil export focused policies by the new government.
In the first quarter, Q1’23, Non-Oil exports fell by 11.8 per cent, quarter-on-quarter, QoQ, to $1.72 billion from $1.95 billion in Q4’22. The decline continued in the second quarter, Q2’23 by another 2.3 per cent, QoQ to $1.68 billion. Non-Oil exports further declined by 3.5 per cent, QoQ to $1.06 billion in Q3’23.
Consequently, quarterly earnings from Non Oil exports fell by $890 million in nine months to $1.06 billion in Q3’23 from $1.95 billion in Q4’22.
As a result, the share of Non-Oil exports in the nation’s total export fell to 7.7 per cent in Q3’23, representing a 5.7 percentage points decline from 13.4 per cent in Q4’23.
Commenting, a renowned economist, Marcel Okeke, said the decline in non-oil export earnings should be expected given the cancellation of policies to encourage repatriation of non-oil exports as well as recent forex reforms of the CBN.
