Geneva, Switzerland: Nigeria has announced an ambitious new strategy to accelerate Africa’s transformation into a global powerhouse for high-value services and digital trade.The declaration was made by the Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, during her keynote address at the ongoing Trade in Services for Development Conference held in Geneva, Switzerland, on December 3, 2025.Speaking to an international audience of policymakers, global financial institutions and trade experts, Dr. Oduwole outlined Nigeria’s bold steps to reshape the continent’s services landscape and strengthen economic resilience. She emphasised that services—particularly digital and knowledge-based sectors—hold the key to sustainable development and long-term economic competitiveness for Africa.
The Minister highlighted Nigeria’s leading role in pushing regional and global reforms, calling for new international frameworks that enable developing countries to fully benefit from the booming digital services economy.Quoting Dr. Oduwole, she stated: “May I be so bold as to say that the economic development of any country can be measured by the robustness of their services sectors and by their levels of trade in services.”She noted that services represent 58 percent of Nigeria’s GDP and over 45 percent of formal employment, underscoring the sector’s centrality to national growth.The Minister applauded the WTO and World Bank for the 2024 Trade in Services for Development Initiative, describing it as a timely platform for expanding developing countries’ capabilities.
She revealed that despite its vast potential, Africa still accounts for only 2 percent of global services trade, while Nigeria’s services exports remain below 10 percent of the national export basket.Dr. Oduwole warned that Africa’s heavy dependence on travel and tourism—sectors highly susceptible to global shocks—must be addressed urgently. Citing the COVID-19 downturn, she recalled that Africa’s service exports fell sharply from US$124 billion in 2019 to US$82.7 billion in 2020, before rebounding to US$150 billion in 2023.
The Minister outlined several major reforms Nigeria has undertaken, including a revamped national intellectual property policy designed to strengthen the commercialisation and protection of creative and innovative outputs.She also highlighted Nigeria’s leadership within the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), particularly as co-Champion of the Protocol on Digital Trade.According to her, “African countries are creating a continental services market through the dual pronged approach of liberalisation of sectors and continental regulatory frameworks.”She noted that Nigeria has played a central role in establishing a Regulators’ Working Group to boost market access and regulatory cooperation for digitally delivered services.Last week, Nigeria also hosted an ECOWAS Expert Meeting that launched five major regional integration initiatives, including a new E-Commerce Strategy, an E-Trade Reform Tracker, and a regional Trade-in-Services Programme to deepen West Africa’s participation in global value chains.Calling for global action, Dr. Oduwole proposed three key recommendations: adopting a holistic approach linking services trade with IP and digital policy; deepening early collaboration between governments and the private sector; and developing a global classification and measurement system for digital services.She declared: “Since our designation as co-Champion on digital trade, we have seen enormous value in engaging with the private sector to formulate bespoke legal and regulatory frameworks that provide the requisite support digital services need to scale.”Dr. Oduwole reaffirmed Nigeria’s full commitment to the Trade in Services for Development Initiative, praising the leadership of WTO Director-General Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and urging all nations to intensify efforts to unlock the transformative power of services-driven development.She added that :“Nigeria is willing to work with the WTO, the World Bank, and other partners to share our insights toward an effective global measurement system for digital services.”
