The Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported a significant increase in agricultural exports for the first quarter of 2024.
The NBS’s report on ‘Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics’ shows that agricultural products worth ₦572 billion were exported to Asia, with exports to Europe totaling ₦366 billion.
Sesamum benne seeds topped the list of exported products, valued at ₦247.75 billion. This was followed by ‘Superior quality Cocoa beans’ at ₦231 billion, and ‘Standard quality Cocoa beans’ at ₦140 billion. Specifically, Sesamum seeds worth ₦83.29 billion were exported to China and ₦58.04 billion to Japan.
Superior quality Cocoa beans worth ₦112 billion and ₦48 billion were exported to The Netherlands and Malaysia, respectively, while ‘Standard quality Cocoa beans’ worth ₦58 billion and ₦38 billion were also shipped to these countries.
Meanwhile, the total import of agricultural goods in Q1 2024 stood at ₦920 billion, accounting for 7.28 percent of total imports.
This marks an increase of 29.45 percent compared to Q4 2023 ₦711 billion and a 95 percent rise compared to Q1 2023 ₦471 billion.
Major agricultural imports included ‘Durum wheat not in seeds from Canada at ₦130 billion and Lithuania at ₦99 billion, followed by Blue whitings a species of frozen fish from the Netherlands valued at ₦17 billion.
The total trade in agricultural goods for Q1 2024 amounted to ₦1.955 trillion, with exports valued at ₦1.035 trillion.
The NBS report also revealed that agricultural exports from Nigeria increased by 123 percent in Q1 2024, reaching ₦463.97 billion compared to Q4 2023.
When compared with Q1 2023 figures, which stood at ₦279.64 billion, the growth amounts to an impressive 270 percent.
