Solid mineral exports jump 83% to N249.7bn as Nigeria seeks ne

Nigeria’s solid mineral exports rose 83.4 per cent year-on-year to N249.70 billion in the first half of 2026, strengthening the sector’s position in the Federal Government’s drive to diversify export earnings and reduce the economy’s heavy dependence on crude oil.

The N249.70 billion value represents an increase of N113.53 billion from the N136.17 billion recorded in the first half of 2025, according to an analysis of the National Bureau of Statistics’ (NBS) first- and second-quarter Foreign Trade Statistics.

The growth accelerated as the year progressed. Solid mineral exports rose to N102.80 billion in the first quarter from N58.87 billion a year earlier, before climbing further to N146.91 billion in the second quarter, up 90.03 per cent from N77.31 billion in Q2 2025.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, Q2 exports increased 42.91 per cent, with the second quarter accounting for about 59 per cent of total solid mineral exports in the first half.

Monthly figures show exports of N50.43 billion in April, N39.27 billion in May and N57.20 billion in June, which was the strongest month of the quarter.

Despite the sharp increase, solid minerals still account for only a small share of Nigeria’s overall export economy. Their contribution to total exports rose to 0.49 per cent in Q1 from 0.29 per cent a year earlier, while the share increased to 0.54 per cent in Q2 from 0.34 per cent in Q2 2025.

That gap between the sector’s growth rate and its relatively small export share underscores the size of the opportunity available to Nigeria if the country can move beyond exporting largely raw minerals into processing and manufacturing.

The latest performance comes as the Federal Government intensifies efforts to formalise mining, improve revenue collection and attract investment into mineral processing. In June, President Bola Tinubu called on African countries to move from exporting raw materials to capturing greater value through local processing and industrialisation.

The policy direction is particularly important for Nigeria because higher mineral exports can generate foreign exchange while creating economic activity outside the oil sector. But the bigger gains would come from refining and processing minerals domestically, which could create jobs, expand manufacturing and raise government revenues from a larger formal value chain.

The sector’s fiscal contribution has already been increasing. Government figures show that the industry generated about N16 billion for the Federation in 2023 and N38 billion in 2024, while earlier reports put 2025 revenue above N70 billion. Investment commitments have also increased as the government seeks to attract capital into exploration and processing.

The NBS data also show that solid minerals are benefiting from a broader expansion in raw-material exports. In Q2, raw material exports rose to N2.31 trillion, up 181.24 per cent year-on-year, although that category is wider than mining and includes other commodities.

The sharp rise in mineral exports therefore provides an encouraging signal for Nigeria’s diversification strategy, but it is still too early to regard mining as a major substitute for oil in foreign exchange generation.

The economic payoff will depend on whether the increase in shipments is followed by greater investment in exploration, processing, infrastructure and formal mining operations. Without that deeper value-chain development, Nigeria risks increasing mineral exports while leaving a substantial portion of the sector’s potential wealth and industrial jobs outside the country.