Nigeria misses $1bn leather export target as earnings stall at $921m
BY MOTOLANI OSENI
Nigeria’s quest to build a billion-dollar leather industry by 2025 has faltered, with export earnings reaching only $921 million in 2024, according to figures from the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC).
Despite high expectations from the National Leather and Leather Products Policy launched in 2021, the sector remains heavily reliant on raw hide exports and struggles with outdated infrastructure.
Currently, 90 per cent of Nigeria’s hides are exported in semi-processed form, contributing just $272 million of the total, while limited value addition efforts, mainly in Aba, Abia State, face steep challenges. Small-scale producers cite unreliable electricity, obsolete machinery, and poor access to financing as major obstacles to scaling up production.
“Aba has the skills, but not the tools,” said footwear maker Nkechi Ofor. “We can compete globally, but without power and loans for machines, we’re stuck.”
READ ALSO: NiDCOM commends declaration of July 5 as Ijaw Day in Houston
With a population of over 200 million, Nigeria produces about 48 million pairs of shoes annually—far behind Vietnam, which makes 760 million pairs with just 96 million people. Local production in Aba accounts for only 0.0013 per cent of global footwear sales, despite Nigeria being one of Africa’s largest raw hide producers.
Industry players blame the lack of national coordination, inefficient logistics, and poor environmental compliance for limiting progress. Many tanneries still fall short of international eco-processing standards, making it difficult to attract global buyers.
Back in 2021, then Vice President Yemi Osinbajo projected the leather industry could “easily top a billion dollars” if Nigeria transitioned from exporting raw hides to producing finished leather goods. But four years later, key milestones in the government’s eight-point implementation plan remain unmet.
The NEPC estimates the industry’s potential at $1.5 billion annually if policy reforms, infrastructure upgrades, and financing access are fully implemented. But with less than six months remaining in 2025, stakeholders warn the billion-dollar dream will stay out of reach unless urgent action is taken.
