How Tinubu’s Economic Reforms Are Helping Onitsha, Aba, Nnewi Importers – APC South-East VC
By Felix Oti, Awka
The National Vice Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), South-East, Dr. Ijeomah Arodiogbu, MBBS, PhD, has stated that importers in the South-East are now reaping the benefits of the Federal Government’s bold economic reforms.
These include the unification of the foreign exchange market, improved dollar stability, significant reduction in importation costs, and the introduction of duty-free importation for electric vehicles.
Dr. Arodiogbu made the remarks while highlighting the positive impact of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda on businesses in the region.
Dr. Arodiogbu recalled that South-East importers and businesses across Nigeria previously operated under a highly fragmented and opaque foreign exchange regime. Multiple exchange rate windows created wide gaps between the official and parallel markets, often exceeding 60 percent.
This fuelled arbitrage, round-tripping, and preferential access for a privileged few, while genuine importers struggled with severe dollar scarcity.
He said many traders faced long delays in accessing foreign exchange for letters of credit, accumulated backlogs of unpaid FX obligations running into billions of dollars, and constant uncertainty that inflated the cost of goods and disrupted supply chains.
“The parallel market became the default source for most legitimate businesses, driving up landed costs of imports and contributing to inflationary pressures that hit traders and consumers hard,” he stated.
Highlighting the Federal Government’s foreign-exchange reforms, Dr. Arodiogbu noted that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) adopted the willing-buyer, willing-seller model in June 2023, effectively unifying the foreign-exchange market and replacing the previous segmented structure.
According to him, “For importers in Aba, Onitsha, Nnewi, Lagos and other major commercial centres, predictability in the foreign-exchange market is extremely important. A businessman who knows the prevailing market rate can plan, negotiate with suppliers and price his goods with greater confidence.”
He said the improvements in foreign-exchange conditions are part of a broader economic reform programme aimed at restoring confidence, attracting investment and strengthening the productive capacity of the Nigerian economy.
The APC South-East leader also pointed to the Federal Government’s 2026 fiscal measures, which have reduced duties on several categories of imported goods and equipment. Passenger vehicles have seen lower duties, while electric vehicles have moved to a zero-duty category under the revised measures.
He described the electric-vehicle policy as an important development for South-Eastern entrepreneurs who are increasingly involved in automobile trading, technology, manufacturing and emerging mobility businesses.
“The zero-duty treatment for electric vehicles is not simply about bringing cars into the country. It can stimulate a new ecosystem involving vehicle dealerships, charging infrastructure, maintenance, spare parts, technical training and local assembly,” he said.
He noted that these incentives, combined with the expansion of the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas to include electric vehicles, demonstrate the administration’s intention to diversify Nigeria’s transportation energy mix and reduce dependence on conventional fossil-fuel-powered mobility.
Dr. Arodiogbu noted that the region has historically produced some of Nigeria’s most successful entrepreneurs and commercial networks, particularly in Onitsha, Aba, Nnewi, Enugu and other commercial hubs, and should therefore position itself to benefit from new investment opportunities created by the reforms.
“The South-East has the entrepreneurial capacity, commercial networks and human capital to take advantage of these reforms. What we need now is to move from complaining about the old challenges to strategically positioning our businesses for the opportunities emerging under the Renewed Hope Agenda,” Arodiogbu stated.
The APC National Vice Chairman urged traders and business organisations across the South-East to take advantage of the emerging opportunities and reposition their businesses to benefit from available incentives, rather than viewing government reforms solely through the lens of political debate.
