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Introduction
Trade and investment discussions in Nigeria almost always happen in Abuja and Lagos. While Lagos is the commercial hub and Abuja the political capital, this narrow focus overlooks the diversity and depth of Nigeria’s economy. Each of Nigeria’s 36 states and 774 local governments holds distinct comparative advantages, untapped markets, and resilient people, yet these remain underexploited.
It is, however, at the state level that trade creates jobs, inclusive growth, and tangible development. Subnational engagement, the direct pursuit of trade and investment partnerships by state and local governments, must therefore become central to Nigeria’s growth strategy.
During my Mandela Washington Fellowship at Jackson State University, Mississippi, I observed how U.S. states deliberately position themselves for investment. From Mississippi to Ohio, state-level Departments of Economic Development aggressively pursue opportunities, attract trade, and build partnerships. This subnational model ensures opportunities are not concentrated in Washington, D.C., or New York but distributed across diverse states, each leveraging its comparative advantages. Nigeria must adapt this model.
Nigeria’s trade profile and the role of the U.S.
Nigeria’s trade remains dominated by crude oil exports and manufactured imports, with partners like China, India, the Netherlands, Spain, and the United States accounting for the largest share. China leads with industrial goods and infrastructure, while India and Spain buy much of Nigeria’s crude.
The U.S., not the largest by volume, counts Nigeria as its second-largest trading partner in Sub-Saharan Africa, with trade consisting mostly of crude oil, vehicles, machinery, and cereals. However, the volume underutilises the depth of U.S.–Nigeria relations, underpinned by decades of cultural, educational, and diaspora ties that remain largely untapped as economic assets.
When former U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo visited Lagos in 2023, he emphasised that Nigeria’s greatest asset is not oil but its people. His words underscore why the U.S. must expand beyond Abuja and Lagos into Nigeria’s real economy at the state level.
Recent moves by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu further highlight why the time is ripe. At the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), Tinubu held bilateral talks with Japan, leading to agreements that designated a Japanese city as a hub for Nigerian engagement. He then followed up with expanded discussions in Brazil, where outcomes included the return of Petrobras to Nigeria’s energy sector and the launch of a direct Air Peace flight between Lagos and São Paulo.
In this evolving multipolar world, the U.S. cannot afford to watch from the sidelines while others deepen their economic footprints in Nigeria. U.S. trade engagement must go beyond Abuja or Lagos to the states and communities where Nigeria’s real economy resides.
The case for subnational engagement
At the heart of Nigeria’s economic challenge is over-centralisation. Trade and investment conversations are dominated by the federal government, while states — closer to the realities of the people and businesses — remain underutilised and ill-equipped. Yet it is at this level that Nigeria’s most compelling comparative advantages lie. Examples abound:
Aba (Abia State): home to thousands of small-scale manufacturers producing footwear and garments for West African markets.
Delta State: combining oil wealth, gas reserves, seaports, and a budding services economy with strong agribusiness potential in cassava, oil palm, and aquaculture.
Enugu State: once the cradle of coal mining, now repositioned as a hub for education, tourism, technology, and agriculture. Governor Peter Mbah has commendably demonstrated commitment to enabling private sector growth.
Nnewi (Anambra State): a hub for light manufacturing and auto parts, embodying Nigeria’s culture of local industrialisation.
Benue, Jigawa, and Adamawa: Anchors of Nigeria’s agricultural economy.
Kano: a northern commercial hub with centuries-old trans-Saharan trade links that could be revived in the AfCFTA era.
At its core, trade is about people, places, and partnerships, and each of these states (as well as others) represents an entry point for U.S. investors, technology transfer, and business partnerships.
U.S. investment often brings with it America’s strengths in advanced technology, human capital development, higher standards, and a commitment to doing business the right way. The case for subnational engagement is not just about commerce. It is about job creation, inclusive growth, human development, and deepening U.S.–Nigeria ties beyond Abuja and Lagos.
U.S. Commercial Diplomacy in 2025: A window of opportunity
In May 2025, the U.S. launched its Commercial Diplomacy Strategy, requiring embassies and consulates to actively support American firms abroad. Diplomats are now assessed partly by the trade and investment deals they facilitate in host countries.
This framework presents a huge opportunity for Nigeria; it means there is a clear incentive for U.S. missions in Nigeria to connect American capital, technology, and markets to Nigerian opportunities. But U.S. diplomats can only act on opportunities they know exist. Right now, many Nigerian states are invisible. Without structured engagement, U.S. investors will default to Lagos and Abuja.
It is the responsibility of Nigerian states to market their opportunities, engage U.S. consulates proactively, and showcase themselves as credible partners, and also of the U.S. to expand its trade outreach beyond the familiar.
A four-pillar framework for subnational trade diplomacy
To operationalise this shift, four practical instruments are essential. The responsibility lies with Nigerian states to organise and showcase themselves, while U.S. missions should remain open and responsive.
1. Targeted Trade Missions
States should organise missions to U.S. states with sectoral fits (e.g., Delta–Texas for energy and port services; Benue–Iowa for agribusiness; Enugu–North Carolina for education and tech). U.S. trade delegations should reciprocate with site visits to other Nigerian cities. Trade missions must be sector-specific and governor-led, with investment prospectuses and backed by chambers of commerce and MSMEs.
2. State-Level Trade & Investment Expos
States should host annual expos that convene U.S. commercial sections, diaspora investors, Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), and private equity, together with local firms. These should feature matchmaking, project pitches, and exporter capacity-building.
3. Embedding Subnational Actors in the U.S.–Nigeria Commercial Investment Partnership (CIP)
The 2024 CIP should be expanded to include governors (via the Nigerian Governors’ Forum), commissioners, chambers of commerce, and state-level private sector actors. This ensures finance, technical assistance, and market access reach the states — not just Abuja.
4. Alumni Networks as Catalysts
U.S. Exchange Alumni, such as Mandela Washington Fellows, are already embedded in state ecosystems. They run businesses, advise policymakers, and shape civil society. States should leverage these alumni as connectors, either individually or through alumni networks like the U.S. Government Exchanges Alumni Association of Nigeria (USGEAAN) or the Mandela Washington Fellowship Alumni Association (MWFAAN).
By integrating alumni networks into trade dialogues, U.S. missions gain trusted local insights, while states gain sustainable partnerships and visibility.
Conclusion: Toward Shared Prosperity
The future of U.S.–Nigeria economic relations — and Nigeria’s development — depends on looking beyond Abuja and Lagos. Subnational engagement is not optional; it is the missing link to a broad-based, people-driven partnership.
For Nigeria, this means job creation, inclusive growth, and enterprise-driven development. For the United States, it means reliable partners, expanded markets, and a stronger foundation for long-term strategic ties.
Economic opportunity favours the prepared, the visible, and the persistent. Nigeria’s 36 states must stop waiting for opportunities to trickle down; they must go after them. Every state has something to sell and an investment story to tell. The U.S. is listening — but will our states speak up?
(Daniel Chibuikem Anazia, based in Delta State, Nigeria, is a 2025 Mandela Washington Fellow of the U.S. Department of State’s Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI). He is an accountant working at the intersection of business, civic engagement, and policy to promote trade, investment, and MSME growth.)
