President Bola Tinubu has approved an immediate six-month ban on the export of raw shea nut as part of measures to curb informal trade, boost domestic processing, and protect Nigeria’s shea industry.
The temporary suspension, subject to review at the end of its tenure, is targeted at stabilising the sector and positioning Nigeria to earn about $300 million yearly in the short term.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, who announced the directive on Tuesday during a multi-stakeholder meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said the decision was not “an anti-trade policy, but a pro-value addition policy” designed to secure raw materials for domestic processors and create jobs.
“This move will transform Nigeria from an exporter of raw shea nut to a global supplier of refined shea butter, oil, and other derivatives. It is about industrialisation, rural transformation, gender empowerment, and expanding Nigeria’s global trade footprint,” Shettima said.
According to him, Nigeria produces nearly 40 per cent of the global shea crop but accounts for just one per cent of the $6.5 billion global shea market, a situation he described as “unacceptable.”
Earlier, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, explained that Nigeria, despite being the world’s largest producer of shea nuts at 350,000 metric tonnes yearly across 30 states, captures less than one per cent of the global market, largely due to informal trade.
He said over 90,000 metric tonnes of raw shea are lost each year to unregulated cross-border trade.
