The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has appealed to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to allocate more foreign exchange (Forex) to manufacturing companies to support their importation of raw materials and machinery.
The chairman of MAN, Edo/Delta branch, Dr. Okwara Udensi, gave the charge on Thursday in his address at the 36th Annual General Meeting (AGM) with the theme ‘Nigeria’s Struggling Economy/Unstable Macroeconomic Policies: Lessons and Challenges For The Manufacturing Sector’’ in Benin, Edo State capital.
According to him, the chronic foreign currencies shortage, especially the USD, is adversely affecting the manufacturing sector’s performance and contributions to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
Udensi said: “Manufacturing companies are unable to access the dollar at the official rates and they need it for the importation of raw materials. They have been consequently to go to the parallel market to get the dollar at higher rates.
“The sector is facing numerous challenges and it needs the urgent attention of the Federal Government to provide an adequate bailout for the sector to avoid total collapse”, he added.
The branch chairman maintained that the manufacturing sector would only be able to contribute to the country’s economic growth if the numerous challenges militating against its operations were tackled.
He listed key among the challenges as poor electricity, high lending rates, multiple taxes and levies by government agencies, low patronage of made-in-Nigeria products and congestion at the Lagos ports.
The MAN chief expressed his hope that the identified challenges would be addressed by the government to move the country from an import-dependent to a self-sufficient and export-based economy.
Udensi pointed out that this can only be achieved with consistency in governments’ policies to guarantee the required enabling environment so that manufacturing companies are able to operae at maximum capacity.
In his remarks at the meeting, National President of MAN, Mr. Mansur Ahmed, urged the CBN to direct commercial banks to process FOREX allocation applications by manufacturers transparently.
Ahmed, who was represented by a former Chairman of MAN, Edo/Delta chapter, Dr. Alofoje Unuigboje, at the meeting also called on the Federal Government to adopt a strategic policy measure to mitigate the disruptive impact of the ongoing Russian-Ukraine war on the global supply value chain.
The industrialist commended the Edo and Delta State Governments for prioritizing youth empowerment through the Edo Innovation hub and the Graduate Employment Enhancement Programme in Delta.
Speaking at the forum, a professor of Economics at the University of Benin, Prof. Mercy Anyiwe, advised Nigerian manufacturers to leverage innovation and technology to standardize their products for competition in the rapidly changing the global market.
To achieve this, the economist urged the association to collaborate with research institutes and academia to address some of the challenges constraining their operational efficiency.
