The Federal Government has rated the Export Expansion Grant scheme as a great success as it has helped manufacturers and producers of export crops to increase their exports.
The Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Ngama, stated this while addressing the press after a meeting of the EEG Inter-Ministerial Monitoring Committee in Abuja.
Ngama explained that between 2005 and 2011, Nigeria witnessed over 300 per cent growth in non-oil products export.
This is up from $100 million in 2005 to $3.2 billion at the end of 2011.
He reiterated the resolve of the government to work towards ensuring an appreciable balance between oil and non-oil products export.
He revealed that between 2005 and 2012, the Federal Government had given N254.09 billion as export expansion grant to manufacturers and producers of export commodities.
A breakdown of the amount as given by Ngama shows that N21.92 billion was granted in 2005; N24.35 billion was granted in 2006; N11.03 billion was granted in 2007; and N29.47 billion was granted in 2008.
The grant in 2009 was N41.18 billion; in 2010 it was N27.96 billion; in 2011 it was N67.39 billion; and in 2012 it was N30.75 billion.
The minister stated that a cardinal point of the Transformation Agenda of the current administration is to diversify the economy and that a viable means of achieving this objective is to encourage people that engage in non-oil production and exports.
He said this was what informed the establishment of the Export Expansion Grant Scheme.
The Export Expansion Grant Inter-ministerial Committee meeting was the last for the year 2012.
It was attended by Minister of State, Trade and Investment and was chaired by Ngama.
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