In the oil and gas sector, Nigeria's free economic zone has created over 200,000 direct and indirect jobs since its creation in 1996. It also has the capacity to create millions of jobs and huge economic prosperity if the country's stakeholders and their counterparts across Africa work together.

At the 30th Anniversary Conference of the Free Zones Program in Nigeria on November 30, 2022, Senator Tijjani Y. Kaura, Director General, CEO of the Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority (OGFZA) in Nigeria, tagged: “Nigeria Special Economic Zones: Evolvement, Challenges and Way Forward To Economic Growth Scheme and Sustainability”. He notes that the objectives of the free zone program were primarily to stimulate industrialization through the promotion of exports, technology, skills and knowledge transfer.

Note that job creation and the attractiveness of local and foreign direct investment were among the objectives. However, the program has recorded some achievements in Nigeria over the years. In reality, it still lags behind in providing key economic development indices compared to what has been achieved by free zone programs in other locations.