China access to boost Nigeria's seafood trade

From the shrimp-rich waters of the Gulf of Guinea to cold-storage facilities and processing plants along Nigeria's coast, a new export opportunity is taking shape as the West African country prepares its first shipments of wild-caught seafood to the Chinese mainland.

Nigeria is targeting annual seafood exports to the Chinese market of up to $200 million following August's signing of a landmark inspection and quarantine protocol that opened direct access to the market, potentially creating a new source of income for hundreds of thousands of people linked to the fisheries industry.

The agreement allows Nigerian fishers, processors and exporters to tap into a market of about 1.4 billion consumers at a time when China is expanding market access for African products under its zero-tariff policy.

Vincent Isegbe, comptroller-general of the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service, said Nigeria already has an established seafood industry exporting to markets including the European Union, the United States and Turkiye.

China, however, offers an opportunity to dramatically expand the industry by opening a vast new market that could create jobs across Nigeria's fisheries value chain, rather than simply redirecting exports from existing destinations.

"We are hoping to hit between $150 million and $200 million in exports to China, and I am sure there is room for more as we progress toward our export goal," Isegbe said.

The breakthrough followed the signing on Aug 13 of the Protocol on Inspection and Quarantine Requirements for Wild Aquatic Products to be Exported to China between the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service and China's General Administration of Customs.

The protocol establishes the sanitary, inspection and quarantine requirements Nigerian exporters must meet before their products can enter China.

It came at an opportune time, following China's May 1 extension of zero-tariff treatment to Nigeria and 52 other African countries maintaining diplomatic relations with Beijing.

The policy is already coinciding with expanding Africa-China trade. Chinese imports from Africa reached $28.6 billion in May and June, up 23.5 percent year-on-year, according to China's Commerce Ministry.

Nigeria-China trade, meanwhile, reached $18 billion in the first half of this year, with Chinese imports surging 80 percent to $2.3 billion, according to the Chinese Consulate General in Lagos.

Seafood is now expected to add to that growing basket of Nigerian exports. Benson Ajibi, head of aquatic resources quarantine at the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service, said the protocol covers frozen wild marine finfish, crustaceans, mollusks and other wild aquatic invertebrates, while live products are excluded.

He said the initial shipments are expected to focus on some of Nigeria's commercially important species, including wild black tiger shrimp, white shrimp, brown shrimp and blue crab.

Shrimp, in particular, could be among the biggest beneficiaries of the new market. Isegbe said Nigeria has a well-developed industry where a single large exporter can generate between $25 million and $50 million annually.

"We have one of the (most) robust and largest shrimp markets in the world," he said.

During the August signing ceremony, Atlantic Shrimpers, one of Nigeria's major seafood companies with more than 70 trawlers and over 1,000 employees, said it was ready to begin exports and had already identified potential buyers in China.

In preparation for the new market, the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service is inspecting participating processors and exporters to ensure they meet the requirements agreed with China, with compliant facilities to be certified and approved companies listed for export.

"We expect to have the first shipment any time from now," Isegbe said.

China has supported Nigeria in strengthening the technical capacity of quarantine officials, including through training programs for NAQS personnel, he said. "Currently, four of our officers are undergoing training in China."

Importance of traceability

Ajibi said traceability will be particularly important as seafood moves from the ocean through an extensive chain of fishers, aggregators, processors, warehouses, cold-storage facilities and exporters.

Nigeria, with a roughly 853-kilometer Atlantic coastline, has an estimated 500,000 to 700,000 fishers, ranging from artisanal operators and cooperatives to commercial trawler companies.

If Chinese demand grows as expected, the effects could therefore extend far beyond large exporters. Higher exports could generate demand for more vessels, processing facilities, cold storage and logistics while creating a larger market for catches landed by coastal fishing communities.

Nigeria's Minister of Power Joseph Tegbe, who also serves as director-general of the Nigeria-China Strategic Partnership, has called for swift implementation of the aquatic products protocol.

The new market access should be converted into increased exports, foreign-exchange earnings and greater opportunities for Nigerian businesses, he said.

victor@chinadailyafrica.com