Manufacturers canvass protectionism to save struggling industries

In the face of unbridled importation of many locally available products, Nigerian manufacturers say the Muhammadu Buhari-led government should think of partial closure of the country’s borders to protect struggling domestic industries.

Nigeria has become a dumping ground for all manner of products, most of which are cheap but sub-standard and short-lived. A large number of these imported sub-standard products come from China, India and other Asian countries, which will not produce them for their own citizens.

Nigerian manufacturers, therefore, say this situation is making it difficult for local industries to survive and is scaring new investors away from pumping money into the real sector of Africa’s largest economy.

They add that Nigeria should be wary of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) proposed by the European Union as it is capable of sending many local industries to south.

“If we open our borders and allow all manner of goods to come in here, we will not be able to sell our products,” said Frank Udemba Jacobs, president, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), at an annual press briefing in Lagos last Wednesday.

“On Economic Partnership Agreement, our products cannot compete with those of Europe if we have this agreement. We are not saying that our country should be isolated from the rest of the world. But we do not have the level of technology Europe has now,” Jacobs said.

“In any part of the world, manufacturers are protected. China closed its borders for a long time. India did the same thing. Even the United Kingdom once closed its borders to textiles until the local fabrics makers grew. We are not saying there shouldn’t be EPA but we need to get to a certain level of development before accepting the EPA,” he explained.

However, it still remains to be seen how Nigeria can close its borders given that the ongoing Common External Tariff (CET) regime, which makes tariffs in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) uniform.

The president of manufacturers in Africa’s largest economy said it is wrong for Nigerians to assume that goods made in the country are of low quality, stressing that the citizens should, as a matter of patriotism, buy made-in-Nigeria products to keep the factories alive.

“People sometimes think that products made here do not have good quality. This is not true at all. Before you become a member of MAN, your products will be put under tests. It is only when we are satisfied with what is on ground that you can become a registered member.  Two, it must be clear to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) that your product meets acceptable standards. Products are also certified by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON). I think our people should be more patriotic and buy made-in-Nigeria goods because we are taking jobs to other countries when we keep buying foreign goods,” he noted.

He said the fact that the present federal government is serious with diversifying and expanding the Nigerian economy is a testament that it has embraced the National Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP), a programme targeted at developing solid minerals, agro-processing and manufacturing.

He said the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN)’s retention of 11 percent Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) is not good enough as it still keeps lending rates at double-digit.

“The only way to diversify the economy is for the interest rate charged manufacturers to be between three and five percent. Anything higher than that cannot help manufacturing,” he said.

He said in the last one year, MAN has strengthened cooperation and collaboration with government agencies such as the SON, the Customs, the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) and the Nigerian Shippers Council, among others.

The association also advocated the stoppage of scarce foreign exchange to the Bureau De Change outfits in the country and review of guidelines on their operations, he said, adding that its advocacy programme led to the successful resistance of the implementation of MYTO 2.1 introduced by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and electricity distribution companies (DISCOs).

ODINAKA ANUDU

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