The Nigeria International Trade Fair 2025 returns to the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex, Badagry Expressway, from November 21 to November 30, 2025, the Executive Director (ED), Barr. Vera Ndanusa, speaks with Vanguard in this interview on what to expect.

The Nigeria International Trade Fair (NITF) is returning under its known name after a 14-year hiatus. What are the key reasons for reviving this event now, and why is its original name and national mandate being restored?

The Trade Fair has reverted to its former name in order to give it continuity. We decided to continue from where it started. The Fair started decades ago so we decided to relocate it to its original name so as to give continuity and also keep the face as the commercial hub in Africa. That’s the place to be. Going back is bringing back the position of the Fair in the country.

We had to revive the Trade Fair because over the decades we’ve seen investors’ interest in Africa and growth in areas like tech, agribusiness and manufacturing. Restoring the Fair to its original name is about reaffirming the first mandate as Nigeria’s national marketplace.

It is our mandate to actually organize the Fair. The Trade Fair complex is purposely built. So, going back to its name is continuing with the legacy of business growth in the complex and to also sustain the Trade Fair’s position as the market hub in West Africa. It is a commitment to actually rebuild the Fair as a flagship gateway to the ECOWAS region and the aftermarket, most especially because of the location of the complex which is at the West Africa corridor. It’s going to be a regional marketplace and an easy access to other markets from West Africa and Africa as a whole.

The fair is positioned as a “gateway to the $700B ECOWAS market” and a platform for the African Continental Free Trade Area. How specifically will NITF 2025 help Nigerian businesses, particularly SMEs, leverage these massive regional and continental markets?

No nation’s economy can grow without SMEs. The SMEs are the centre focus of the NITF 2025. The opportunities include direct access to buyers and distributors from across West Africa and beyond. Participation in sector-specific workshops and export readiness goods will bring back goods that are export-ready.

We are also going to leverage what we used to do, which is the NITF Awards, by creating some specific opportunities for both participants and investors alike to compete for some trophies. We actually opened up the space for more participants to participate. We will create opportunities for financing and digitalization. We’re also creating B2B, match-making sessions for investors to meet traders, for investors to meet owners of new businesses who may need financial assistance.

Above all, it is going to give visibility to SMEs that may not have the opportunity of making their goods across borders themselves. It’s a holistic package and we’re making sure that everything is done properly, such that SMEs, women and youths are carried along.

Could you elaborate on how technology and digital trade will be integrated into the Fair’s activities? And what tangible outcomes do you expect from this focus?

We’re integrating them in three ways. First, through digital exhibition, catalogues and appointments, online bookings that allow buyers and sellers to connect in advance and to optimize their time.

Secondly, through thematic pavilions and workshops on digital transformation like e-commerce, fintech and green technology. We give businesses exposure to cutting-edge solutions.

Thirdly, through conversations on policy and regulation that support digital trade across borders. The outcome we expect includes increased adoption of digital tools by Nigerian SMEs, new partnerships with global tech players and real case studies of businesses that expand into new markets through digital channels after the Fair.

Incidentally, we know that Nigeria has been placed in the forefront of digitalization in Africa so we’re leveraging that to get the experts in technology to teach our business owners how they can use technology to broaden their marketplaces and improve their goods and services. This focus, we believe, will help businesses expand into new markets and expect markets from other countries. Through digitalization and technology, SMEs will be able to reach larger and wider market within a very short period of time.

With the supervision of the ministry, we’ll make sure that the goods they’re putting out there are the goods they’re really getting out. Technology is really going to help them reach larger market and to also connect with buyers and investors online. Also, they will have the opportunity of meeting policy makers, discussing policies that will cap them with digital trade.

The Fair aims to facilitate B2B and B2G exchanges. What measures have been put in place to ensure that these interactions result in concrete deals and partnerships, rather than just networking?

That’s a good question. We don’t intend to leave things at just networking. We want to make sure there are concrete evidence and sealing of deals. In doing that, we have small meeting rooms where we will have Business-to-Business (B2B) and Business-to-Government (B2G). We’ll also have rooms where businesses can meet with relevant buyers, investors and government agencies will also be speaking. Government agencies that are relevant to the growth of businesses will also have meeting rooms. We also intend to track deals and document contracts that will be signed, MoUs that were executed.

The goal is for every interaction at NITF 2025 to have a clear pathway to action. When they have smaller B2B, Buyer to Seller, signing of MoUs and so on, we will track them, we’ll provide good environment for this to happen. We’ll have meeting days and opportunities for the government to speak to sellers and buyers; we’ll have opportunities for buyers to connect with traders. We have all these put in place where they can meet and synergize and form partnerships which will cause their businesses to thrive and expand our revenue in Africa and across Africa.

What will be the key performance indicators (KPIs) for the success of NITF 2025? Beyond the number of visitors and exhibitors, how will you measure its impact on the Nigerian economy and trade sector?

Our strategy includes partnership with sectoral ministry like I said earlier. We’re involving trade associations even the export promotion bodies both the private and government angles. We also want to ensure that we have geography and industrial spread. Our partnership with the Nigerian Chamber of Commerce is ensuring that the different sectors will register to attend NITF 2025. We will actually monitor it and at the end of the day we’ll be able to see the progress that the NITF made as against the last time the Fair was held.

All indices and strategies are put in place – firm readiness, most especially export-ready businesses, women-led businesses and youth-led enterprises and so on. We intend to broaden their participation and monitor their activities during the 10-day Fair. After the Fair, we’ll continue to monitor and see the effects, those that have long-lasting impact, those that benefited, what they benefited and how far they’re running with it. The value of deals and contracts signed during the Fair, the volume of Foreign Direct Investment and the number of SMEs that secure export opportunities or new financing, also the diversity of sectors represented and geographic spread of exhibitors which I said earlier that the Chamber of Commerce and Mines and Industry is assisting us with.

We’ll look at the policy and regulatory outcomes such as the framework for initiatives that improve trade environment. Beyond attendance, we want to focus on the economic impact all these things will have on our SMEs and trade generally during the Fair.

Given the long hiatus, what were some of the challenges or reasons that led to the Fair’s suspension, and how has the management board addressed those issues to ensure this revival is sustainable for the long term?

A lot of challenges led to the Fair’s suspension. Key among the factors was policy change. There were some policies that were taken that did not achieve the desired result so the government had to revert to what it was. Governance gap, funding difficulties and competing priorities, the realities of then and now and then the political will. The government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is keen on reviving the Nigerian economy and is keen on Nigeria taking its place as the market hub in Africa. So, with the political will, the environment was created and machinery was set in place for us to revive it. When you have a round peg in a round hole, then things seem to work out. We came and decided to run with the vision of the complex.

If Nigeria has to be a trade hub, we must go back to the status quo, we must go back to presenting venues and avenues for other Africans to come and trade in Nigeria and we must also expose Nigeria to other international markets. We have taken deliberate steps, for instance, through public-private partnerships with some like-minded institutions and private organizations that have seen the importance of having this Fair. Now the Fair is back, bigger and better and it will be better for every country that decides to participate. Some countries beyond Africa are coming. We intend to continue; we are setting machinery in place to see that beyond this administration, the Fair will continue as an annual event like it used to be.

It used to be a Fair that countries look up to, not just countries from Africa, but from all over the world. People come because Nigeria has the population, no doubt about that. It is also situated in a very free location where transportation is not difficult. You can come from anywhere in the world without having difficulty. You don’t have to go through so many countries to get here. The revival is not just symbolic but paramount.

Under the President’s eight-point agenda, he’s reviving the economy of the country and trying to make Nigeria the trade hub of Africa. In doing that, the agency has to sit up and make sure that we align with Mr. President’s agenda and revive it. This time around, the agency is putting everything in place so that the Fair becomes annual and we will no longer have any break. We must ensure it continues even after the lifespan of this administration.

Expected attendees include delegations from multiple countries. What are the key incentives or value propositions being offered to attract international exhibitors and investors, and how do you see their participation benefiting local businesses?

There are a lot of things in place to attract them. Firstly, we have people on ground who will assist them, for instance, in the building of their booths. We have incentives like making the goods they will be bringing tax-free. We have interpreters on ground, streamlined logistics, tailor-made B2B meetings, curated investors’ introductions so that international firms can see peer value and low low-friction path to market engagement.

The participation of international exhibitors actually creates a two-way bridge that directly benefits locals. It brings with it foreign investments, technology transfer and market linkages. For the locals, we have job creation. Within that 10-day period, there will be a lot of employment and every other sector of the economy is going to be affected. The hospitality space is also going to benefit from it. The transport and media are going to benefit from it and so much more. They will also get wider markets for their goods and services.

Nigeria, like I said earlier, is a very big space with over 200 million citizens. Anybody who comes into the Nigerian market with good and acceptable offerings will definitely break through and break even. Attracting them is a priority for us. We want them to come; it’s a win-win situation. They will have access to this Nigerian market and every other tailor-made logistics while we will also have foreign exchange. They will also have foreign exchange because they are bringing goods from other countries to Nigeria and Nigeria will also benefit foreign exchange from them.

So we are really working with the Ministry of Trade and Investment, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to make sure that our participants are comfortable, enjoy their stay and enjoy every benefit of attending a fair of this nature which is market space, foreign exchange among others.

There’s been a lot of discussion around the recent demolition at the Trade Fair Complex. From your perspective, can you help us understand what really happened?

Yes, there was a problem. No doubt about that. This problem stems from the lack of understanding of intergovernmental relationships. The Trade Fair Complex is a federal government complex run by a federal government agency under the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, with the mandate to control, develop, organize and bring the complex up to speed with commercial activities, organization of Trade Fair, national exhibitions, even building of estates, among others.

Along the line, some agencies of the state government felt that building approval ought to come from them for building within the Trade Fair Complex. They are relying on a judgement of 2003. However, we have other judgments and the constitution mandates us to approve the buildings within our complex. We have the full rights as an agency to carry out our functions. But there’s been a breakdown of communication. However, we’re working on it now. We’re having meetings with each other to address the issue. It’s a federal government-to-state government issue and I hope it will be resolved very soon. To me, it’s just a misunderstanding and some people did not take time to come to the management of the complex before carrying out what they did. But we’re working on it.

How is the Trade Fair authority managing the recent demolition issue alongside preparations for the upcoming Nigeria International Trade Fair?

NITF 2025 is not just the management’s trade fair; it is the Nigerian International Trade Fair, which means that it is a Nigerian programme. It is a programme by the federal government for the people of Nigeria and other countries coming in, so it definitely will not affect it. They have been told, it’s unfortunate that it happened in the first place. It is because they were not really aware of what was going on. But I want to assure the general public that nothing will affect the NITF 2025. The Trade Fair will hold peacefully, security is guaranteed, the safety of lives and property is guaranteed. There will be no disruption because Nigeria cares a lot about her image, citizens and businesses of the citizens.

Like I said earlier, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is concerned about the economic revival of Nigeria so he wants businesses to thrive and businesses will only thrive where there is peace. That is why there is peace now. If there are legal issues, we’re looking into that. For now, no further disruptions will take place. The fair will take place peacefully and successfully, with the safety of all participants and visitors guaranteed. (Vanguard)