Leadnaija
The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, is partnering with the Nigeria Commodity Exchange (NCX) and the Africa Trade and Distribution Company (ATDC) to launch the country’s first National Export Trading Company (NETC), aimed at boosting Nigeria’s export potential and addressing long-standing challenges in the commodity value chain.
The initiative was unveiled at the West African Economic Summit Deal Room held over the weekend in Abuja, with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in attendance.
Designed to serve as an operational arm of ATDC Nigeria, the NETC is supported by the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), an initiative of Afreximbank. Other collaborators include Arise Integrated Industrial Platform (ARISE IIP), Equitane, and the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) Secretariat.
The NETC aims to empower Nigerian micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to access structured regional and international markets. It will provide critical trade infrastructure, market intelligence, financing options, and logistical support to small producers and agro-processing SMEs.
According to the organizers, the company will tackle systemic issues in Nigeria’s export ecosystem, including warehousing bottlenecks, quality control challenges, poor transport logistics, and limited market access.
Speaking at the event, Chief Executive Officer of ATDC, Abdoul Aziz Ba, said the new entity would serve as a vital enabler of trade in Nigeria.
> “ATDC Nigeria will not just be an ordinary company – it will be a trade enabler. We are building a trade ecosystem that will provide market intelligence to enable producers to manufacture the products that are required by the market,” Ba said.
He added that the NETC would play a pivotal role in strengthening institutions like the NCX and support the broader economic vision of the Federal Government under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
The NETC is expected to catalyze increased non-oil exports, enhance Nigeria’s participation in AfCFTA, and improve the competitiveness of Nigerian goods in the global marketplace.
