By Our Reporter
The Managing Director of the Nigerian Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA), Dr. Olufemi Ogunyemi, has disclosed that one of Nigeria’s successful free trade zones generated over 40 billion Naira in revenue in 2024. He also revealed that NEPZA remitted nearly 9 billion Naira to the federal government in the first half of 2024.
Ogunyemi made these revelations during an interview on Channels Television’s News Night Programme on Sunday. He emphasized that NEPZA brings substantial revenue to the government, even though it might not always be directly captured in official statistics. “A percentage of the 40 billion Naira generated has come from these free trade zones,” he explained, adding that agencies like Customs, NAFDAC, and even the Immigration Service also benefit from the activities within these zones.
The NEPZA boss acknowledged that out of over 50 free trade zones in Nigeria, 20 are currently non-operational. He assured that the agency is actively working to revive these zones to make them more appealing to investors and strengthen the country’s free trade zone framework. “We have about 55 or 56 zones, but about 20 are not operational, which skews the figure. For example, Dubai has only 44 zones, while Kenya has about 33,” he noted.
Ogunyemi pointed out that the most successful zones are concentrated in the Lagos region. He highlighted the Lekki Free Trade Zone, which is jointly owned by the Lagos State Government (40%) and the Chinese Government (60%). He also clarified that the Lagos Free Trade Zone is owned by the Tolaram Group, a Singaporean family, and not the state government, a group, he said, recently invested $70 million to acquire Guinness from Diageo.
Other successful zones in the Lagos axis include the Dangote Refinery and Alaro City near Epe. Ogunyemi also mentioned the Guangdong Free Trade Zone in Ogun State, a joint venture between the Ogun State Government and the Chinese Government, as well as the Bundu Free Trade Zone in Delta State, which focuses on sugar production. The Sabore Agro-Processing Zone in Adamawa State is another zone contributing to the country’s economic growth.
He further noted that the Calabar and Kano free trade zones are also performing well. NEPZA is focused on reviving and developing other zones across the country to attract more investments and promote economic growth.