By Awyetu Asabe Hope
Nigeria’s cashew exports have surged to over N635 billion ($446.9 million), rsing to the country’s third largest non-oil export commodity in 2025, the Federal Government has said.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Mrs Nonye Ayeni, disclosed this last Friday at the Nigeria Cashew Day Conference in Abuja.
Ayeni said cashew ranked fourth among 243 export products in 2024 before moving up to third position in 2025, reflecting growing global demand and improved sector performance.
According to her, cashew export value rose from $219.78 million in the first half of 2024 to $398.14 million in the first half of 2025, while total exports in 2025 stood at 384,814 metric tonnes valued at $446.93 million.
Nigeria remains one of Africa’s leading cashew producers despite persistent sector challenges, she stated.
Speaking on behalf of the Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture, the bank’s Head of Partnerships, Mrs Weyinmi Eribo, said the institution was targeting the cultivation of one million hectares of economic tree crops, including cashew, to boost export diversification and climate resilience.
She noted that over 90 per cent of Nigeria’s cashew is exported raw, resulting in lost opportunities for value addition and jobs, and urged investment in local processing facilities.
Also speaking, Dr Dele Adiniyi of the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN) said more than 15 cashew products and by-products developed through research were ready for commercial adoption.
Meanwhile, the National President of the National Cashew Association of Nigeria, Dr Ojo Joseph Ajanaku, identified illegal exports by foreign buyers as a major challenge and called for stronger enforcement and increased production.
