The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment has formally launched an expanded Nigeria-East and Southern Africa Air Cargo Corridor in partnership with RwandAir, setting cargo rates below $2 per kilogram on five routes for Nigerian exporters holding AfCFTA Certificates of Origin, reducing freight costs that had previously ranged from $3 to as high as $10 per kilogram on the same routes.
The expanded corridor covers export routes from Nigeria to Kigali in Rwanda, Lusaka in Zambia, Harare in Zimbabwe, Nairobi in Kenya, and Johannesburg in South Africa. Industry Trade and Investment Minister Jumoke Oduwole, speaking at the flag-off ceremony in Lagos, said the initiative built on a 2025 corridor launched with Uganda Airlines covering Entebbe, Nairobi, and Johannesburg, and represented another concrete step in making the African Continental Free Trade Area commercially functional for Nigerian businesses rather than remaining a policy framework without practical logistics support.
She said eight businesses received AfCFTA Certificates of Origin at the ceremony, demonstrating that the corridor was producing real export activity rather than serving as a promotional vehicle. The ministry said the initiative was expected to support exporters in agribusiness, fashion and textiles, cosmetics, processed foods, light manufacturing, and other made-in-Nigeria product categories.
RwandAir Cargo Director Jean Bosco Gakwaya said the partnership enabled the airline to connect Nigerian manufacturers to key East and Southern African markets and described the arrangement as a pivotal moment for intra-African trade. The bilateral dimension of the deal built on engagement between Presidents Tinubu and Paul Kagame at the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali in May 2026.
