The Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) has urged exporters in Imo to collaborate with Trade Support Institutions (TSIs) to ease access to international market.Executive Director of the NEPC, Dr Ezra Yakusak, said this in a message to a workshop on facilitating strategic export market access organised by the Agency in Owerri on Wednesday.
Yakusak was represented by Mr Aliu Sadiq, a Deputy Director with the NEPC’S Department of Policy and Strategy.
The executive director harped on effective collaboration with TSIs as a veritable strategy to prepare exporters from Small and Medium Scale Enterprises for niche export markets.
He listed the TSIs to include the ECOWAS Commission; Centre for the Promotion of Import from Developing Countries, Netherlands; and the Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) among others.
He urged exporters to take advantage of the modules of the strategic export market access programmes so as to succeed in the export business.
“It is expedient that we deploy these modules to strengthen the capacities of exporters with necessary tools for penetration of the international market and increased foreign exchange earnings.
“The NEPC will continue to live up to its responsibility of promoting non-oil exports through sustained efforts aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of Nigerian exportable brands in the international market “, Yakusak said.
Speaking, NEPC’S Trade Promotion Advisor in Imo, Mr Anthony Ajuruchi, said that the agency would continue to study market dynamics and device means to seamlessly penetrate them.
According to him, the workshop was part of efforts by the NEPC to increase participation of Nigerian businesses in the export space, to build capacities in market access.
“We are helping export businesses explore new and emerging markets through a hollistic study of market dynamics.
“This programme will act as a catalyst for existing and potential exporters to access new markets for their products for the benefit of the country at large”, he said.
Mr Tobi Raji, who represented Nicert Consulting Limited, one of the TSIs, advised exporters to register their businesses with relevant government agencies for ease of business and market access.
