Belgian ambassador to Nigeria, Pieter Leenknegt has confirmed that cocoa has surpassed crude oil as the major export of the West African country to his.
The ambassador made this known during in an interview, and emphasised thay the bilateral relationship between his country and Nigeria will majorly centre on agriculture and health.
“Nigeria’s exports to Belgium have historically also been mostly crude oil. Now, that is no longer true in 2024, because now cocoa has overtaken crude oil as a main product of export to Belgium,”
“I often tell Nigerians and Belgians alike, Belgian-Nigerian relations in 2025 are going to be about agriculture and health.”
The ambassador revealed that the reduction in the export of petroleum products is due to Dangote refinery that is thriving in Nigeria.
The refinery, which is situated at Lekki in Lagos, was commissioned on May 22, 2023 and is estimated to produce 650,000 barrels of petroleum per day.
