As Nigeria begins to take advantage of its large population and evolving digital space, there is a projection that the value of the country’s e-commerce market could hit $16.8 billion by 2030 with a growing CAGR of 12.5 per cent, even as it is currently put at $9.35 billion.
The underlying pillars for the possibility have been anchored on the country’s growing internet penetration with an equally internet savvy youth population and paradigm shifts.
Disclosing this yesterday in Lagos, the Acting Chief Operating Officer and Head, Aeronautics and Cargo Services of Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited, Mr. Remi Jibodu, said with a population of 237.5 million in 2025 (UN/Worldometer), the largest in Africa, median age of 18.1 years – a very young, digitally adaptable population, internet penetration at 48.78 per cent (105.7 million users, NCC 2025), mobile teledensity at 79.65 per cent (169.3 million active subscribers), Nigeria with the Africa’s largest mobile market could successfully and profitably drive e-commerce growth.
Jibodu, in a paper, Strategic Solutions to Air Cargo in Nigeria with the theme:’ How E-Commerce is Shaping The Future of Logistics in Africa,’ presented at the Avia-cargo summit, said: “The implication is that the demographic and digital surge positions Nigeria as a natural hub for e-commerce growth, but only if logistics, especially air cargo, keeps pace.”
On air cargo, he listed the following as the missing link in Nigeria: weak digital presence and poor e-commerce integration, fragmentation of players and processes, and low market awareness of air cargo services. Others are inadequate infrastructure and weak cold-chain systems, regulatory complexities – multiple agencies with overlapping roles, limited dedicated freighter capacity and challenges balancing cost, speed, transparency, and reliability.
He said Nigeria could transform air cargo into a true enabler of economic growth, adding that the country has all it takes to develop a national cargo logistics policy that integrates domestic air cargo into other multimodal transport.
He equally noted that for cargo to be an enabler of the economy, there was the need to accelerate the adoption of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM), harmonise customs regulations and reduce bureaucracy, review and streamline taxes and levies to enhance competitiveness.
Highlighting strategic solutions to air cargo in Nigeria, Jibodu said there was a need for investment in robust digital cargo platforms, integration of the logistics ecosystem, end-to-end integration with ecommerce platforms, incentivising investment in dedicated freighter aircraft, encouraging financial institutions to create cargo-specific aircraft financing products and exploring the P3 Approach for cargo fleet development.
He urged stronger partnerships among airlines, freight forwarders, ground handlers, and e-commerce platforms to improve packaging standards, perishables preservation, and warehouse facilities to minimise losses.
Source: New Telegraph
Value Of Nigeria’s E-Commerce Market Projected To Hit $18.8bn – New Telegraph