Nigeria Bans Raw Shea Nut Exports for Six Months to Boost Local Industry

 

Nigeria has announced a six-month ban on the export of raw shea nuts, a move the government says is designed to strengthen the country’s role in the global shea industry. Vice-President Kashim Shettima described Nigeria’s current position as unacceptable, pointing out that while the country grows almost 40% of the world’s shea nuts, it contributes only 1% to the $6.5 billion global shea butter market. The temporary ban is aimed at shifting Nigeria from being an exporter of raw nuts to becoming a supplier of processed shea butter and other refined products.

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The shea industry is significant because of its wide uses. Shea butter is highly valued in cosmetics for lotions and creams, while in the food industry it is used in chocolates and ice cream, and in pharmaceuticals for various medicinal products. Extracting butter from the shea nut involves crushing, roasting and boiling the fruit to release its rich oils. Government officials believe that by encouraging more of this processing to happen locally, Nigeria can increase its revenues, create more jobs and empower rural communities. Shettima said the ban is not just about economics but also about industrialisation, rural transformation and expanding Nigeria’s global trade footprint.

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Shea trees grow widely across West and East Africa in a region known as the “shea belt”. In Nigeria, much of the harvest comes from central villages where small-scale farmers, many of them women, plant, gather and process the fruit. Agriculture Minister Abubakar Kyari estimated that Nigeria produces 350,000 tonnes of shea nuts annually, but a quarter of this disappears in unregulated trade across borders. This weakens official revenues and leaves farmers vulnerable to exploitation.

Agriculture expert Dr Ahmed Ismail of the Federal University of Minna explained that many rural farmers are unaware of the true international value of shea nuts. Traders often travel to these remote communities, buy the nuts cheaply, and resell them for far higher profits. He said he had seen villages with heaps of nuts sold at extremely low prices to city buyers. This lack of regulation, he added, has kept rural communities in poverty despite the global demand for shea products.

Dr Ismail praised the export ban as a bold move that should have been made long ago. He argued that it could provide more local jobs, improve incomes for farmers, and boost government revenue. However, he also stressed that it must be accompanied by stricter regulation to ensure farmers truly benefit from the change.

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