Non-oil trade between the UAE and Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, stood at US$1.3 billion in 2016, according to a report released by the Ministry of Economy on trade policy review with the West African country.

As the largest oil exporter in Africa with huge natural gas reserves, Nigeria is ranked as the 26th largest economy in the world.

Hind Al Youha, Director of the Investment Department, said the trade policy review report aims to increase awareness among public and private sectors about the trade and investment systems in the UAE's key trade partners by shedding light on indexes of the economic environment and foreign trade mechanisms, based on World Trade Organisation reports.

The report noted that Nigeria's economy relies heavily on the services sector, which contributed 61 percent to the GDP in 2016.

The United States, US, according to the report, replaced the European Union, EU, as the key export market for Nigerian goods and services.

Nigeria prioritises four sectors agriculture, mining, building materials and manufacturing to diversify its economy away from the oil sector in line with its 2017-2022 development plan to become the world's 20th largest economy by 2020.

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