FG: NATEP Will Unlock Human Capital Potential, Strengthen Partnerships

By Emma Okonji

One year after its strategic re-launch, the National Talent Export Programme (NATEP) has achieved significant institutional progress, policy milestones, and international partnerships that have repositioned Nigeria as a major talent hub in the global services export economy, according to the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

The ministry, in a statement, said the most decisive of those milestones came in November 2025, when the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved the establishment of the National Coordination Mechanism for Services Exports (NCMSE), creating a formal governance framework to strengthen inter-agency coordination, align national policy with global digital trade, and accelerate the growth of Nigeria’s services export sector.

“Since its approval, the NCMSE has provided the institutional architecture for bringing together previously disconnected programmes, agencies, and stakeholders under a common services export agenda,” the statement said.

Minister of Industry, Trade, and Investment; Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, who was quoted in the statement, said: “We are witnessing a shift in the global economy, where greater value and the competitive advantage will be determined by a nation’s ability to cultivate talent, harness deep knowledge-based industries, and participate in high-value services markets built seamlessly across borders.

National Coordinator of NATEP, Teju Abisoye, said the mandate at NATEP was to position Nigeria as a premier global talent hub by building an enabling ecosystem through policy, platforms, promotion, and partnerships.