KEY POINTS

• Nigeria’s trade with other African countries rose 21 per cent to $9.02bn in 2025, from $7.47bn in 2024.
• Intra-African trade increased by 5.5 per cent to $213.8bn in 2025, according to Afreximbank’s African Trade Report 2026.
• Afreximbank says stronger commercial relationships and private sector investment are essential to implementing AfCFTA.
• LCCI identifies production capacity, financing, quality control, logistics and cross-border payments as barriers to regional trade.

MAIN STORY

Nigeria’s trade with other African countries increased by 21 per cent to $9.02 billion in 2025, up from $7.47 billion in 2024, highlighting growing opportunities for local businesses in the continental market.

The President of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr Leye Kupoluyi, disclosed this on Monday at the African Export-Import Bank’s (Afreximbank) Buyers Forum, held alongside the 40th Lagos International Trade Fair.

Kupoluyi said the increase showed the potential for Nigerian businesses to expand their presence in regional markets, but stressed that the growth needed to translate into sustained orders and repeat business.

He said Afreximbank’s African Trade Report 2026 put total intra-African trade at $213.8 billion in 2025, representing a 5.5 per cent increase from the previous year.

The figures point to expanding commercial activity within the continent, but business leaders say stronger connections between producers, buyers and distributors are needed to turn the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) into a more active trading market.

THE ISSUES

Afreximbank’s Director of Regional Operations for Anglophone West Africa, Mr Kudakwashe Matereke, said expanding intra-African trade required stronger commercial relationships among producers, importers, distributors and end markets.

He noted that AfCFTA offered access to a market of more than 1.4 billion people, but implementing the agreement was complicated by differences in member countries’ economic interests and levels of development.

According to him, governments, financial institutions and private businesses must work together to mobilise investment, improve trade facilitation and develop infrastructure that supports cross-border commerce.

Matereke said the private sector was central to the process because businesses were responsible for actual production, investment and trade transactions.

This means that removing tariffs and opening markets would not be enough if African manufacturers lacked the capacity, financing and distribution networks to supply buyers in other countries.

Kupoluyi identified several practical obstacles facing Nigerian exporters, including limited production capacity, inadequate working capital, quality control requirements, documentation, transportation costs and difficulties with cross-border payments.

He said manufacturers and agro-processors needed to understand the expectations of buyers in other African markets and adjust their products to meet different standards, packaging and distribution requirements.

He also called for better coordination among border agencies and more predictable costs and timelines for cross-border transactions.

WHAT’S BEING SAID

“Collaboration with financial institutions and the private sector is imperative to mobilising the capital required to make the agreement successful.” – Kudakwashe Matereke, Director of Regional Operations, Anglophone West Africa, Afreximbank.

WHAT’S NEXT

Afreximbank said its African Buyers Programme was designed to address some of the commercial gaps limiting trade between African businesses.

Launched at the 2023 Intra-African Trade Fair in Cairo, the programme connects qualified buyers with African manufacturers, exporters and service providers. It is intended to stimulate demand for goods and services originating from the continent while supporting market access, business partnerships and trade transactions across Africa and the Caribbean.

Matereke said the bank remained committed to supporting initiatives that would strengthen intra-African trade and deliver economic and social benefits.

Kupoluyi also urged chambers of commerce, export promotion agencies, standards organisations and financial institutions to help businesses overcome the barriers to regional trade.

He said the Buyers Forum provided an opportunity for manufacturers and prospective buyers to negotiate product specifications, supply volumes, delivery schedules and payment arrangements, creating a basis for lasting commercial relationships.

BOTTOM LINE

Nigeria’s growing trade with other African countries shows that regional markets offer opportunities for local businesses. However, securing access to those markets is only part of the challenge. Nigerian exporters must also be able to meet buyers’ requirements, finance production, move goods at competitive costs and deliver consistently if initial trade agreements are to become repeat business.