Keypoints
- Polaris Bank and NACCIMA have inaugurated the Export Express Support Centre at the NACCIMA Secretariat in Ikeja, Lagos.
- The hub is designed as a one-stop center to provide MSMEs with technical support, documentation guidance, and market access tools.
- Polaris Bank donated critical infrastructure, including workstations and high-capacity printers, following its recent Export Readiness Workshop.
- The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) revealed that while over 10,000 exporters are registered in Nigeria, only about 1,000 are currently active.
- The center aims to digitize services to resolve logistics and compliance barriers, specifically targeting increased participation from women and youth.
Main StoryNigeria’s drive to diversify its economy through non-oil exports received a significant boost this weekend with the launch of the Export Express Support Centre in Ikeja.
The facility, a joint initiative between Polaris Bank and the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), serves as a practical intervention for small businesses struggling with the complexities of international trade.
NACCIMA National President Dr. Jani Ibrahim described the center as a vital tool for helping local enterprises navigate global standards and regulatory hurdles like NXP documentation.
Beyond physical infrastructure, Polaris Bank is integrating its digital capabilities into the project; through its VULTe platform and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), the bank is enabling exporters to receive payments in local currencies and speed up the repatriation of proceeds across the continent.
This partnership is expected to turn “inactive” registered exporters into productive contributors to Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves.
The Issues
The primary challenge is the active-exporter gap; with 90% of registered exporters currently inactive, the center must address whether the problem is a lack of information or deeper structural issues like high logistics costs and port congestion. Authorities must solve the problem of regulatory-complexity friction, as MSMEs often find the documentation required by various government agencies to be overwhelming and expensive.
Furthermore, there is a knowledge-capacity risk; as Polaris Bank’s Chris Ofikulu noted, there is a need for formal export education in tertiary curricula to ensure the next generation of entrepreneurs is “export-ready” from day one. To succeed, the center must move beyond being a documentation hub and become a powerful advocate for policy innovations that lower the cost of doing business for small-scale exporters.
What’s Being Said
- “This represents more than a ceremonial handover. It reflects a shared commitment to building systems that support sustainable export development,” stated Dr. Jani Ibrahim.
- Polaris Bank’s Chris Ofikulu emphasized that the bank is providing “stock refinancing, working capital and advisory services” to bridge the financial gap for MSMEs.
What’s Next
- The Export Express Support Centre is expected to begin its first series of hands-on training workshops for MSMEs in the Ikeja industrial cluster.
- Polaris Bank is anticipated to roll out more tailored credit facilities specifically linked to the export contracts facilitated through the NACCIMA hub.
- The NEPC and NACCIMA are expected to collaborate on a digital database to track the success rate of exporters using the center’s services.
- There may be a push from trade groups to present a formal proposal to the Ministry of Education regarding the inclusion of export studies in university curricula.
Bottom Line
The Export Express Support Centre is a much-needed bridge between “having a product” and “hitting a global market.” By combining NACCIMA’s industry network with Polaris Bank’s financial technology, the initiative is making the path to international trade less intimidating for Nigeria’s small business owners.
