The fifth Nigerian Manufacturing and Equipment Expo (NME 2020), co-located with the Sixth Nigerian Raw Materials Expo (NIRAM Expo 2020), will kick off in Lagos next Tuesday. It has as theme: “The Fourth Industrial Revolution and the Nigerian Manufacturing Sector.” While NME was a response to the government’s commitment to industrialisation and diversification, NIRAM was designed to create a platform for manufacturers to source raw materials and also benefit from research and development breakthroughs. How has the expo’s previous editions impacted the industrial sector and the economy? Assistant Editor CHIKODI OKEREOCHA asks.
Nothing will gladden the hearts of Nigerians, particularly manufacturers, than to see a more productive and competitive industrial sector capable of holding its own.
Considering the historic African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which will take off in July, as well as the opportunities presented by the Fourth Industrial Revolution expo, the high hopes of Nigerian manufacturers can be understood.
aSimilarly, the industrial sector and the economy, generally, stand to reap bountifully from the emerging fourth industrial revolution, powered by disruptive innovation to positively impact core industries and sectors, such as education, health and business. Disruptive innovation will reshape how businesses operate.
Under the fourth industrial revolution, disruptive technologies and trends, such as Blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT), Machine Learning, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), 3D printing technology, and Driverless car, would dictate the pace of development among nations.
However, much as Nigerian manufacturers are desirous of playing dominant roles, either in the context of the AfCFTA or the fourth industrial revolution, they are aware that the road to increased productivity and competitiveness cannot be a walk in the park; that it requires hard work and commitment by all stakeholders.
This was perhaps, why the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), in collaboration with Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), chose the “The Fourth Industrial Revolution and the Nigerian manufacturing sector” as the theme for this year’s Nigeria Manufacturing and Equipment Expo (NME) and the Nigerian Raw Materials (NME/NIRAM Expo).
The NME/NIRAM Expo will hold at Landmark Event Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos, from March 10 to 12. The NME Expo, fifth edition, has been the Federal Government’s tool for driving industrialisation and economic diversification since its inception in 2016.
On the other hand, the NIRAM Expo, which is the sixth in the series, was conceived by the RMRDC in 2012 to create a unique platform for manufacturers to source raw materials and also benefit from research and development breakthroughs.
Describing the theme of the co-located events as “instructive and appropriate,” MAN President, Mansur Ahmed, said they came at a time stakeholders in the manufacturing sector needed to critically discuss how to tap into opportunities the fourth industrial revolution presents.
Ahmed said there was the need for manufacturers to remain competitive in a fast-developing industrial space, where disruptive technologies and trends, such as Blockchain, IoT, Machine Learning; AI, and Driverless car, would dictate the pace of development among nations.
“Therefore, the need to start using technology to produce our own food, products and other indigenous innovations becomes imperative so that we do not end up dependent on developed countries,” he said, at last week’s press conference in Lagos, to announce the 2020 NME/NiRAM Expo.
It is easy to see why manufacturers are determined to hold their own. For instance, in the fourth industrial revolution, experts say robotics can and will change peoples’ lives in the near future.
Technically, robots are automated motorised tools. They cook food, play music, record shows, and even run cars. Consequently, robots have the potential to improve the quality of lives at home, work, and many other places. Customised robots will create new jobs, improve the quality of existing jobs, and give people more time to focus on what they want to do.
Similarly, increasing trends in AI point to significant economic disruptions in the coming years. According to experts, artificial systems that rationally solve complex problems pose a threat to many kinds of employment, but also offer new avenues to economic growth.
For instance, a report by McKinsey & Company found that half of all work would be automated by technologies, thereby enabling companies to save billions of dollars and to create new types of jobs.
Also, IoT, which is the internetworking of physical devices, is typically, expected to offer advanced connectivity of devices, systems, and services that go beyond machine-to-machine (M2M) communications and cover various protocols, domains, and applications.
The interconnection of these embedded devices is expected to usher in automation in nearly all fields, while also enabling advanced applications like a smart grid, and expanding to areas, such as smart cities.
The fourth industrial revolution is also said to have the capacity to raise income levels by allowing entrepreneurs to “run” with their new ideas. It will improve the quality of life for many people around the world.
Consumers are likely to gain the most from the fourth industrial revolution. Transportation and communication costs will drop, logistics and global supply chains will become more effective, and the cost of trade will diminish, all of which will open new markets and drive economic growth.
Beyond manufacturers’ resolve to grab the opportunities presented by the fourth industrial revolution, the MAN chief said manufacturers must also not lose focus from latching on locally sourced raw materials and other support facilities like the needed financing and logistics services, which, according to him, will be central to the March 10 engagement.
He stated that this year’s NME/NIRAM Expo will be unique in many ways. According to him, one of its striking new features is the collaboration between MAN and RMRDC to sustain the running of the expo after the exit of Clarion Events West Africa, a South African Company, as event organisers.
Ahmed explained that because of the significant impact the expo has had on the industrial sector and the economy at large, both organisations deemed it necessary to build on successes so far recoded and present an improved expo this year, which would be highly beneficial to all participants.
He said the expo, which is considered as the leading and most comprehensive event encompassing every aspect of the manufacturing value chain, has this year been designed to address pertinent concerns for the eventual take-off of the AfCFTA come July.
The MAN chief, therefore, urged large, medium and small manufacturing organisations to take advantage of this year’s edition to explore new production processes that will increase production output, reduce costs, improve product quality and diversify into new products.
Read Also: Industrialist seeks increase in education sector budget
Assessing the expo’s impacts
Ahmed was not alone when he described the impact of the expo, over the years, on the industrial sector and the economy at large as “significant.”
The Director-General/CEO of RMRDC, Prof. Hussaini D. Ibrahim, also said the sixth NiRAM Expo co-located with the fifth NME Expo for the fourth time consecutively, will build on its successes in the last eight years.
Highlighting some of its achievements on the industrial sector and the national economy, he said, for instance, that the programme has created awareness on agricultural and mineral resources for which the country was endowed and has comparative advantage in value addition, such as cassava, maize, sorghum, limestone, gypsum, tropical fruits, kaolin, phosphate, iron and steel.
Ibrahim also said there has been noticeable increase in capacity utilisation of many manufacturing industries under the 10 sectors of MAN, particularly those in Food, Beverages & Tobacco Sector, Chemical & Pharmaceutical Sector, Basic metal, iron & steel & Fabricated metal sector, Pulp, paper & paper products, printing & publishing sector, among others.
The RMRDC DG also pointed out that NIRAM Expo, in particular, has brought about sustainable balance of resource-based Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) having access to research and development findings from the nation’s reservoir of knowledge.
Ibrahim, represented by the Lagos State Coordinator, RMRDC, Tokunbo Habeeb, described the theme of this year’s expo as “apt.” According to him, “It underscored the imperativeness of industrialisation to national development.”
He said in co-locating the NME/NiRAM Expo, both RMRDC and MAN demonstrated rare confidence and camaraderie among themselves for the purpose of hastening national industrial development.
Ibrahim said after eight years and a strategic co-location of NME Expo, which brought in its stride the formidable membership Partnership for African Development (mPAD), both events now connect the entire manufacturing value chain.
mPAD is a strategic gathering for thought leaders in the manufacturing sector, policy makers and government regulatory agencies to discuss solutions for existing challenges and carve out ideas for growth and development of the manufacturing sector.
The Nation learnt that in line with MAN’s previous practice, the NME will run side by side with a conference on mPAD. On the sideline, RMRDC will also host master classes on latest research findings delivered by carefully selected resource persons.
Ahmed added that another significant session will be the “Women in Manufacturing” session, which affords Amazons the opportunity to share their experiences with intending women manufacturers who are prospecting to venture into the sector but have reservations on their expectation.
The Chief Executive Officer, Sokoa Chair Centre Limited, Mrs. Ibukun Awosika, will chair this session. The renowned manufacturer will be sharing her experience alongside selected women manufacturers that have confirmed attendance at the event.
Last year’s NME/NiRAM Expo with the theme “Optimising the value chain in the manufacturing sector to ensure industrialisation” showcased exhibitors, brands and the latest technological solutions, including B2B matchmaking networking section.
Leave a Reply