Exporters of non-oil products in the country earned the sum of $2.34bn (N714bn) in the 2017 fiscal period, data obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria revealed.
The amount is contained in the CBN economic report, which was obtained by our correspondent on Friday in Abuja.
An analysis of the report showed that operators in the sector earned the sum of $870m in the first quarter. The amount declined in the second quarter to $350m.
However, in the third quarter, the sector’s earning rose to $505.9m before hitting the sum of $614.5m in the fourth quarter.
A breakdown of the $2.34bn showed that exporters in the agricultural sector with $852.23m received the highest export earnings within the 2017 fiscal period.
The agricultural sector export earnings of $852.23m were generated thus: $341.6m in the first quarter; $100.43m in the second quarter; while the third and fourth quarters had $97.6m and $312.6m, respectively.
Operators in the manufacturing sector followed with total export earnings of $553.7m while minerals sector operators received a total income of $481.2m during the period.
In the same vein, exporters of industrial products sector received a total income of $307m while those in food products sector earned $146.16m.
The report said the least income of $0.41m was received by exporters in the transport sector.
It said, “Total non-oil export earnings received through the banks rose by 20.7 per cent above the level in the third quarter of 2017 to $614.50m in the review quarter.
“The development was due mainly to the 43.2, 18.0 and 6.1 per cent increase in foreign exchange receipts from agricultural, industrial and minerals subsectors, respectively.
“A breakdown by sectors showed that proceeds from agricultural products, minerals, industrial sector, manufactured products and food products were $312.6m, $103.5m, $98.9m, $88.5mand $10.9m, respectively.
“The transport sector recorded $28,010.37 in earnings during the review period.
“The percentage shares of agricultural products, minerals, industrial sector, manufactured products and food products in the total non-oil export proceeds were 50.9, 16.9, 16.1, 14.4 and 1.7 per cent, respectively.”
Speaking on the development, a former Managing Director of Unity Bank Plc, Mr. Rislanudeen Mohammed, said there was a need for policies to support the agricultural sector.
He said, “We need to focus on policies that support backward and forward integration and seek to make agriculture a business rather than just for self-sufficiency.
“Nigeria has huge economic potential outside oil sector which is largely untapped due to the so called Dutch Disease that has for years made us lazy and always relying on mono-product commodity called oil as a source of income, notwithstanding the fact that oil constitutes only 10 per cent of our Gross Domestic product.”
According to him there is a huge potential for growth in the non-oil export in most states, stressing that virtually every state has one form of economic competitive advantage or the other.
“For example, virtually the whole of Zamfara State is sitting on gold and Diamond, largely untapped with little going to illegal miners.” (Punch)
