The Kogi State Committee on Export Promotion (SCEP) has adopted coal as an additional commodity under the One State, One Commodity initiative to boost non-oil exports and strengthen the state’s economic development.

The committee reached the resolution on Friday at its Third Quarter Meeting for 2026, held at Lokoja, themed “From Awareness to Action: Positioning Kogi for Non-Oil Export Growth”.

The meeting, chaired by the permanent secretary of the ministry of commerce and industry, Musa-Amana Sualihat, brought together government farmers, exporters and other stakeholders in the export sector.

Ms Sualihat urged members to move beyond discussions to concrete actions capable of identifying, developing and connecting Kogi’s export commodities to reliable markets.

She said the state’s agricultural produce, solid minerals and entrepreneurial capacity could contribute significantly to economic growth if properly developed, standardised and linked to international markets.

The chairman said proper documentation and reliable data remained critical to the identification of export commodities, noting that the proposed State Export Product Profile and Exporter Database would provide information for effective decision-making.

Ms Sualihat also listed capacity building for exporters and MSMEs on export procedures, packaging, quality standards and documentation as part of the committee’s work plan for the third and fourth quarters of 2026.

She called for stronger collaboration among producers, cooperatives, processors, exporters, financial institutions and government agencies, stressing that value addition remained essential to the state’s non-oil export drive.

The State Coordinator of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), Akinlabi Adams, presented reference materials on export commodities relevant to Kogi, including sesame seed, palm oil, groundnut, cashew, cotton, chilli pepper, coffee, rice, cassava and soya beans.

Mr Adams outlined quality specifications and international markets for these commodities. He encouraged the Kogi Chamber of Commerce and other stakeholders to utilise trade and commercial desks of foreign embassies to attract buyers and investors.

Representing Kogi State Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (KOCCIMA), Rajan Suleiman, disclosed plans by the Chamber to organise a trade fair before November to connect Kogi exporters with foreign embassies and prospective investors.

Mr Suleiman said the event would be followed by structured engagements to match specific product, quantity and quality requirements with available export opportunities.

The committee resolved to support the proposed trade fair as part of its fourth-quarter activities and strengthen information sharing among stakeholders.

Members expressed commitment to improving trade linkages between producers, exporters and buyers through a well-organised exporters’ database and stronger stakeholder coordination.

(NAN)