The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment under Dr. Jumoke Oduwole is demonstrating a deliberate shift from policy pronouncements to tangible economic outcomes, writes Oluchi Chibuzor
When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, one of the central pillars of his Renewed Hope Agenda was the transformation of Nigeria into a productive economy driven by industrialisation, trade expansion, investment inflows, manufacturing, digital innovation and non-oil exports.
Nearly three years later, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (FMITI), under the leadership of Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, has released its scorecard detailing how the ministry and its agencies have aligned their programmes with the President’s economic vision.
The 19-page document reveals measurable policy implementation across virtually every institution under the ministry—from the Bank of Industry (BoI), the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM) and the Nigeria Talent Export Programme – showing that Nigeria is steadily repositioning itself as Africa’s preferred investment destination while simultaneously building domestic productive capacity and expanding its influence within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Over the years, economic policy in Nigeria has often been criticised for focusing more on policy announcements than implementation. But the FMITI document therefore adopts a different approach as it demonstrates that government initiatives are not isolated projects but components of a broader economic strategy.
Positioning Nigeria at the Centre of African Trade
The AfCFTA represents the largest free trade agreement in the world by participating countries. For Nigeria, whose economy has traditionally depended heavily on crude oil exports, the agreement offers an opportunity to diversify into manufacturing, services, agriculture and digital trade. Rather than remaining a passive participant, the FMITI under Oduwole believes Nigeria has deliberately pursued continental leadership.
Today, Nigeria has been designated as the Champion of the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade by the African Union Assembly of Heads of State. This achievement carries implications beyond diplomatic prestige. Digital trade is expected to become one of Africa’s fastest-growing economic sectors over the next decade.
Cross-border e-commerce, fintech services, digital payments, business process outsourcing and technology-enabled services increasingly determine competitiveness. By becoming the continental champion, Nigeria is expected to influence the rules governing digital commerce across Africa.
Given Nigeria’s youthful population and expanding fintech ecosystem, this leadership role could eventually strengthen its position as Africa’s digital economy hub.
The FMITI has commenced strategic engagements with the AfCFTA Secretariat to coordinate implementation of the agreement. This matters because many African countries signed AfCFTA but still struggle with practical implementation.
Trade agreements require harmonised customs procedures, dispute-resolution mechanisms, rules of origin, logistics coordination and regulatory alignment. Without these, preferential market access remains largely theoretical.
Removing Trade Barriers
Under Oduwole’s leadership, Nigeria has successfully gazetted the Provisional Schedule of Tariff Concessions under AfCFTA. For manufacturers, exporters and investors, tariffs often determine competitiveness. The gazette provides the legal framework through which Nigerian goods can enjoy preferential access to other African markets. In practical terms, this means products manufactured in Nigeria could face lower import duties in participating African countries. If fully implemented, the reform could increase the competitiveness of Nigerian products ranging from processed foods and pharmaceuticals to textiles, chemicals and manufactured consumer goods. More importantly, it could encourage manufacturers to view Africa—not only Europe or Asia—as their primary export destination.
To address these concerns, the FMITI under Oduwole has begun reforms involving exporters, the Central Bank of Nigeria and NAFDAC. The objective is to simplify export procedures while improving the utilisation of export proceeds. If effectively implemented, these reforms could reduce transaction costs and improve the liquidity of exporting businesses. This represents an important shift from promoting exports in theory to addressing practical constraints faced by businesses.
Intellectual Property Protection
Another structural reform initiated by the ministry concerns the review of Nigeria’s trademarks and intellectual property framework. Although intellectual property reforms rarely attract public attention, they are increasingly important in attracting investment. Technology companies, creative industries, pharmaceutical firms and manufacturing businesses all depend on strong protection of patents, trademarks and copyrights. Weak IP protection discourages innovation and reduces investor confidence.
Owing to the, the FMITI has begun reviewing the regulatory framework in collaboration with the Ministries of Justice, Creative Economy and Digital Economy.
The Investment Commitments Question
Today, over $50 billion in foreign direct investment (FDIs) commitments have been facilitated through presidential foreign engagements. However, investment commitments should not be confused with actual investment inflows. Commitments represent announced intentions by investors, whereas inflows measure capital that has actually entered the economy. Nevertheless, securing investment commitments remains an important first step. Today, the FMITI has established mechanisms for implementation tracking and investor support to improve conversion from commitments to realised projects. The effectiveness of these tracking systems will ultimately determine whether the announced commitments translate into factories, infrastructure, jobs and exports.
Beyond attracting investment, there have also been a deliberate effort by the ministry to diversify Nigeria’s international economic partnerships. Among the most notable developments is the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) signed with the United Arab Emirates in January 2026. Unlike traditional trade agreements that focus mainly on tariffs, CEPAs generally encompass broader cooperation in investment, services, digital trade, logistics and private sector collaboration.
For Nigeria, the agreement offers opportunities to strengthen market access while deepening bilateral investment flows. Given the UAE’s growing role as a global logistics and investment hub, the partnership could create new opportunities for Nigerian exporters and businesses seeking international expansion.
Reforming Nigeria’s Trade Architecture
Among all the initiatives undertaken by the ministry under Oduwole, none has the potential to transform Nigeria’s trade environment more fundamentally than the establishment of the National Single Window (NSW). For decades, importers and exporters have complained about multiple government agencies demanding separate documentation, overlapping inspections, prolonged cargo clearance and high port costs. These inefficiencies have made Nigerian ports among the most expensive and slowest in Africa.
The National Single Window, launched in 2026, is intended to create an integrated digital platform through which customs documentation, cargo clearance, permits and inter-agency approvals can be processed electronically. If implemented effectively, the implications could be far-reaching.
Instead of moving physical documents from one agency to another, businesses would interact with a single digital interface. This could significantly reduce processing times, eliminate duplication, improve transparency and lower the cost of doing business. Countries such as Singapore, South Korea and Rwanda have demonstrated how Single Window systems can dramatically improve trade efficiency.
Domestic Investment Summit
While much public attention often focuses on attracting FDI, the ministry is championing a shift from that by placing considerable emphasis on domestic capital mobilisation. This explains the significance attached to Nigeria’s first Domestic Investment Summit held in 2025.
The summit brought together institutional investors, pension fund managers, development finance institutions, commercial banks, government agencies and private-sector operators to identify investment constraints and mobilise local capital for economic development and a large number of the investors’ concerns were resolved during the summit, while the remaining issues were addressed within few days. By seeking to unlock domestic capital, the ministry appears to recognise that sustainable industrialisation cannot depend exclusively on foreign investors.
Another milestone was Nigeria’s hosting of Investopia in February 2026. Investopia, established by the United Arab Emirates, has become one of the world’s leading investment forums, bringing together governments, multinational corporations, sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors. Nigeria, under the leadership of Oduwole, became the first African country to host the event. Hosting such a forum provided benefits that extend beyond the event itself as international investment decisions increasingly depend on perception.
CANEX 2026 and IATF 2027
Nigeria secured hosting rights for CANEX 2026 and also shortlisted to host the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) 2027. CANEX focuses on Africa’s creative economy, while IATF has become the continent’s largest trade and investment marketplace. Hosting these events offers several advantages. One is the fact that they attract international investors, manufacturers, financial institutions and policymakers. Hotels, airlines, logistics companies and service providers also benefit from increased commercial activity. More importantly, Nigerian businesses obtain direct exposure to continental buyers and investors without leaving the country.
BoI, FRC, SMEDAN, NEXIM, Others
No industrial policy succeeds without affordable long-term finance. This is the role assigned to the BOI, which remains Nigeria’s foremost development finance institution. The bank recorded its highest-ever annual disbursement, releasing N636 billion in financing during 2025 to more than 7,000 businesses operating across manufacturing, agribusiness, ICT, power, infrastructure and MSMEs. The BoI disbursed N56.7 billion in MSME loans and N5.2 billion in grants to more than 114,800 small businesses during the year.
This reflects a broader policy objective. MSMEs account for the overwhelming majority of Nigerian businesses and provide employment for millions of people. However, many struggle to obtain affordable credit. By directing substantial resources toward smaller enterprises, the BoI seeks to improve business survival rates while strengthening domestic production.
While the BoI provides finance, SMEDAN focuses on enterprise development. According to the report, SMEDAN expanded the national MSME database to 527,825 registered enterprises through nationwide digital onboarding and formalisation initiatives.
Also, economic growth depends not only on attracting investors but also on protecting them. Transparent financial reporting and sound corporate governance remain essential for investor confidence. As a result of this, the FRC has strengthened enforcement of corporate governance codes, enhanced compliance monitoring and deepened collaboration with sector regulators to align reporting systems with international standards.
Similarly, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council occupies a central position in the ministry’s strategy. According to the report, Nigeria’s non-oil exports reached US$6.1 billion in 2025, representing an 11.5 per cent increase over the previous year. Equally, export volumes also rose to approximately eight million metric tonnes.
Also, exports from Free Trade Zones exceeded N95 trillion, while foreign direct investment inflows surpassed US$5.5 billion during 2025. Free Trade Zones provide investors with infrastructure, regulatory incentives and simplified customs procedures.
SON plays a critical role in ensuring that Nigerian products satisfy both domestic and international standards. According to the report, SON maintained over 99 per cent efficiency in SONCAP certification processing while strengthening product registration systems nationwide. The agency also reduced certification timelines from approximately 14 days to between three and five days through digital reforms.
According to the report, the Industrial Training Fund (ITF), working through the Nigeria Automotive Technical Education Programme (NATEP), trained more than 289,000 artisans, craftsmen and technicians across manufacturing, ICT, construction and related sectors during 2025. This represents one of the largest workforce development efforts described in the report.
Furthermore, it showed that export values within OGFZA increased from $192.8 million in the first quarter to $271.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2025. Annual export performance reached approximately US$868.4 million, while Special Economic Zone exports exceeded N2 trillion. While NEPC promotes exports, Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM Bank) provides specialised financial support.
Conclusion
The most significant observation here is the changing role of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment under Oduwole’s leadership. There has been a deliberate attempt to reposition the FMITI as an economic strategy ministry. One that coordinates investment, industrialisation, exports, digital trade, enterprise development and international economic diplomacy under a unified framework.
However, implementation challenges, global economic volatility, infrastructure deficits and financing constraints will continue to test policy execution. The ultimate measure of success, however, will not be the number of agreements signed, meetings hosted or policies announced. In the long-run, it will be whether these reforms produce more factories, more competitive businesses, stronger exports, higher productivity, sustainable jobs and improved living standards for Nigerians.