In an effort to empower women, youths, and special individuals for export business, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has developed units under its Export Inclusiveness Division.
Dr. Ezra Yakusak, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of NEPC, claims that the divisions will support the promotion of Nigeria’s non-oil export to international markets as a means of fulfilling its share of the responsibility to diversify the country’s economic revenue base away from hydrocarbon resources.
At the debriefing of exhibitors at the 2022 Fruit Attraction International Trade Fair/Training of Women-Led Businesses for Enhanced Participation at Trade Events, Akintunde Folorunsho, Regional Coordinator, South West, NEPC, was present and stated that the program’s goal was to inform participants of the trade fair’s outcomes, including engagement with buyers, feedback on the exhibited products, industry trends, and market requirements.
According to him, the event also served to confirm the number of businesses that prospective clients and partners had previously hired, as well as to assist the development of long-lasting business ties between female entrepreneurs and their trading partners.
“Furthermore, we hope to enlighten women-led businesses on the market requirements for the export of fruits and vegetables related sectors. We understand that this knowledge will be instrumental in achieving sustainable growth and success in your respective businesses,” he added.
According to the head of the NEPC, the organisation will also be identifying female exporters of fruits, vegetables, and other goods that were sought after by prospective buyers during the fruit attraction trade show that took place in Madrid, Spain, last year.
He emphasised the organisation’s commitment to encouraging women-owned businesses to participate in fruit festivals and other trade shows that might raise awareness of non-oil products while also expanding Nigeria’s market share abroad.
Commenting about the fruit attraction trade show, he pointed out that it provides a forum for business owners in the fruit and vegetable sector to network and develop new business prospects, noting that 130 nations were represented at the 2022 edition.
“We hope that this debriefing/training session will be both informative and engaging for all participants. This exercise combined with a training session to prepare other women entrepreneurs for enhanced participation at trade shows,” he added.
Adeola Balogun, one of the participants, claimed that following the fruit attraction, exporters under ITC Shetrade received mentoring on what to anticipate, how to package and display products, possible markets, and how to get in touch with a funder to increase non-oil exports.
The majority of the women who work in export, she claimed, lack access to collateral for large sums of money to finance large exports, therefore funding continues to be a significant difficulty in the non-oil export industry.
