Can you run a mini importation business from Makurdi?

Mini importation in Benue

Benue is known as the 'Food Basket of the Nation'. Farming is the main occupation, the state is a leading producer of soybeans, and yam, rice, cassava, sorghum and sesame are major crops. That farming base shapes trade. Makurdi Modern Market is a key distribution point for yams and cassava, and Zaki Biam's International Yam Market is described as the biggest single-product market in Nigeria. Makurdi also hosts the CBN's regional headquarters and agro-businesses such as MIVA Rice and Oracle Farms and Feed Mills.

Sellers in Benue can split their attention between students and households. Makurdi has Rev. Fr. Moses Orshio Adasu University (Benue State University) and Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University, the University of Mkar is at Gboko, and Federal Polytechnic Wannune serves another student community. These campuses are natural WhatsApp-group markets for gadgets, fashion and accessories. Households and traders around Wurukum Market, a large daily market for vegetables, yams, fish and general goods, are another audience. Tiv, Idoma, Igede and other languages are spoken alongside English, so captions in a local language can help.

Because farming is the mainstay, household spending in Benue may rise and fall with the yam, rice and soybean harvests, so watch how buyers respond on WhatsApp through the year and adjust your stock. Agro-processing in Makurdi also points to a possible small-business market for packaging and farm supplies. For incoming goods, Benue sits on both the A3 highway and the Eastern rail line, so sellers can choose between road and rail.

Where to sell in Benue

Products worth testing in Benue

• Phone accessories and budget gadgets: Worth testing with students at Benue State University and Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University in Makurdi, and at the University of Mkar.
• Food storage containers and packaging: Makurdi is a distribution point for yams and cassava and has agro-businesses, so storage and packaging items are worth testing with small processors and traders.
• Small farm tools and sprayer parts: Farming is the mainstay of Benue's economy, so practical farm items are worth testing.
• Kitchen tools for yam and cassava preparation: Yam and cassava are major Benue crops, so graters, pounders and similar tools are worth testing with households.

Before you order stock, run the numbers in the free product checker and test demand with pre-orders.

Getting imported goods to Benue

Benue has no seaport. Ships occasionally offload cargo at the Abinsi jetty on the Benue River, but river ports at Makurdi and other towns are only proposed. Makurdi Airport is a domestic airport at the Nigerian Air Force base. The Federal Government plans to expand it into the country's largest agricultural cargo airport, but for now imported goods reach Benue by road or rail.

The A3 runs from Enugu through Otukpo and Makurdi to Lafia, and the A4 heads northeast towards Taraba. Other roads reach Jos, Calabar (via Adikpo), Okene and Wukari. The Eastern rail line runs about 180 km through the state from Enugu and crosses the Benue on the 1932 Makurdi Rail Bridge. In Makurdi, GIG Logistics has a service centre at 4 Old Otukpo Road, by Savannah Roundabout, and intercity bus companies such as Victoria, Zaamo and Valgee serve the city.

Frequently asked questions