Top 10 African countries by maritime merchandise trade in 2020
According to UNCTAD, most developing countries move more than 80% of their internationally-traded goods by sea. In Africa, Nigeria had the most maritime merchandise trade in 2020.
Source:
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
Apapa Port accounted for 71.6% of Nigeria’s total trade value in Q1 2025 and 82.12% of total exports
Apapa Port handled ₦25.79 trillion worth of goods in Q1 2025, representing 71.6% of total trade. It remains the country’s primary trade hub, far surpassing all other ports combined.
Apapa alone facilitated ₦17.74 trillion or 86.1% of Nigeria’s total exports, showing a high dependency on a single location for outbound goods.
Tin Can Island is the only meaningful secondary hub With ₦3.44 trillion (9.5%) in total trade, ranking a distant second. It’s the only other port contributing more than ₦1 trillion each to imports and exports.
Lekki has limited export impact, despite handling ₦1.70 trillion in imports. Lekki contributed only ₦0.30 trillion (1.5%) in exports, indicating underutilization for outbound trade.
Murtala Muhammed International Airport processed just ₦647.91 billion (1.8%) of total trade, reinforcing that Nigeria’s international trade remains heavily maritime-focused.
