By Merit Ibe [email protected]
Manufacturers under the auspices of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) have lamented that Nigerian products would continue to be uncompetitive if interest rate remains at double digits.
Former president of MAN, Mansur Ahmed, who made the remark in Lagos recently said there is no where in the world where manufacturers borrow at more than 25 per cent to produce and remain competitive at the same time, hence the call on the Federal Government to formulate policies to attract foreign direct investments into the sector. He also urged local manufacturers to be ready to generate more employment opportunities.
“The policy environment is the first determinant of the success of our operations. Policies that promote local production, such as the Executive Orders, backward integration policies and initiatives in the agriculture sector that are being supported by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), are good, but we need these policies to be sustained,” he said.
Cautioning government not to make contradictory policies that would be harmful to businesses, he said “We need to encourage policies in the financial sector that will make credit more affordable and accessible, while implementing policies that make foreign exchange easier to access. We need to encourage those who generate foreign exchange to bring in more.”
He assured that MAN and the sector as a whole will rise to the occasion and ensure that it builds on the existing capacities and continue to improve on the quality and competitiveness of its products.
Ahmed further urged MAN members to take advantage of opportunities created by the policies of the present administration and the emerging continental market to expand their investment, improve manufacturing operations and standard of their products.
The former MAN boss observed that the performance of the manufacturing sector has been constrained by familiar challenges that are clearly espoused in its numerous submissions to the government.
He lamented that, the increasing incidence of new tax heads payable by manufacturing concerns have become a major threat to the survival of indigenous companies in diverse ways and essentially responsible for the prevailing increase in the cost of doing business; reduction in investment inflow and additional pain points on manufacturers.
For his part, Director General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, said despite the harsh business environment, Nigerian manufacturers have remained resilient in continuing production in the midst of unfair competition with smuggled and substandard goods.
He said there was need for the nation’s manufacturing sector to achieve a 10 per cent increase in the share of manufacturing to total export merchandise, stronger inter-industry linkage between SMEs and large corporations, improved manufacturing contribution to government tax revenue and 20 per cent increase in manufacturing employment.
He also advised that, to industrialise the nation and achieve next decade target, there is an urgent need for investment in infrastructure, pointing out that the provision of same remained the bedrock of industrialisation.
Ajayi-Kadir also called for the creation of a business-enabling policy framework, as inconsistencies and lack of business friendly policy measures are major challenges in Nigeria.