Tag: Manufacturers Association of Nigeria

The organised private sector (OPS) in conjunction with the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) have called on the government to install an efficient port system.

This was the outcome of the intensive mPAD meeting organised  by MAN recently Lagos.

“We need an efficient port system that guarantees speed and reliability to ensure on-time delivery of raw materials and the export/distribution of finished products from the factories to destinations,” OPS noted.

According to the OPS, there should be close monitoring of the terminal operators by relevant government agencies like NSC and NPA to enforce modern ports operation as vital nodes in the logistics chain, saying that it would go a long way to support fast-paced industries where products must be moved to the market on time.

“Our inland transport network; highways, waterways, railways must be made to be efficient to catalyse economic activities and to ease spatial interaction in the distribution manufactured goods.  Government should fast track the passage of all transport related Bills with the NASS, particularly the NTC Bill. This would go a long way in helping to provide the transport infrastructure capacity need in the logistics sector.

“We should take the advantage of the volume of cargo destined to Nigeria to make Nigeria a logistic hub in the sub region.  Requires that the country must be made logistically competitive. This can be achieved through making Nigeria distribution center for services and goods in the sub-region.The waiver being enjoyed by MAN through government fiscal policies must be seen to reflect on locally manufactured goods. The collaboration between MAN and freight forwarders should be deepened by channeling MAN consignments through the freight forwarders.” OPS outlined.

The OPS noted that construction of more logistics highways should be promoted to ease cargo flow from seaports to the hinterland other than the concentration on the port access roads, explaining that other road linkages are in ever bad state.

According the MAN President, Ahmed Mensur; “The relevant stakeholders should synergize to address the incessant placing of alerts and undue interruptions in the cargo clearance process.  To further escalate these discuss I would humbly request that MAN, freight forwarders and shippers under the guide of NSC could come together to chart a course for revamping the ailing transport logistic sub-sector of the economy.

“We in the Manufacturing sector can now look forward with confidence that the bold and dynamic policies and purposeful initiatives introduced by the Administration which have helped to rescue our economy from recession, and re-direct it towards sustainable and inclusive growth, will not only be sustained but scaled up.

“We particularly appreciate Mr. president’s setting up of the High level Committee to undertake wide ranging consultations with key stakeholders to assess the impact on and readiness of our various sectors with regards to the “African Continental Free Trade Agreement” before signing the framework Agreement.  When this Committee concludes its work and submits its report, we expect that all critical issues and recommendations made by the stakeholders, including MAN, will be considered in taking the final decision on the matter.

“As you are aware, the introduction of The Expo and mPAD by the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria is meant to boost the technological base of the Nigerian manufacturing sector which has been identified as one of the banes for the sector’s growth and development.

“Through this annual international event which provides a common ground for large manufacturing organizations and SMEs to explore new production process that will increase their production output, the Association has taken the challenge of leading the manufacturing sector to play a vital role in the nation’s vision of becoming one of the leading industrialized economies in Africa”

Some members of the Organised Private Sector have said that the reduction in the budgetary allocation to the agricultural sector compared to 2018 would further contract the growth of the nation’s fragile economy.

Speaking in an interview with The Nation, the President of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) Ahmed Mansur decried the reduction in the allocation to agriculture, stating that in 2018 the allocation was over N89 billion and in 2019 it came down to about N80 billion.

Mansur regretted that the reduction will affect all aspects of agriculture, especially the value chain which is at the developmental stage.

He added agriculture performed well in 2018, stressing that he expected the government to do more in the area of agriculture inputs.

He said, “The government should redirect its focus on the key sectors of the economy if it wants to reposition the Nigerian economy for positive growth, and to sustain the growth which would help prevent the country from sleeping back into recession.”

He advised regulatory agencies to be on their toes, saying that the implantation of government policies have a significant effect on the business environment and the economy in general.

He applauded the government for the inclusion of fertilizer to the banned items, saying, “It is now 42, which is a welcomed development as it would ensure that infant and fragile industries become competitive.”

Echoing similar sentiments, the Director General of the Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Dr. Muda Yusuf said on the contrary that the capacity of the government to fund the budget has reduced, adding that the budget size is reduced compared to 2018.

Yusuf said, “Secondly, agriculture is not on the exclusive list, it is on the concurrent list. It is not like defense and security that is on the exclusive list of the government. For this reason, the state has to put something on the table also.”

He recognised that one of the biggest challenges to agriculture is the issue of availability of land, explaining that the federal government is not directly in charge of the land, but to a large extent, the state has to make available.

“There is also the issue of policy, tariffs on the cost of importation of farm implements such as tractors, insecticides, herbicides and other agro-chemicals. Some of these chemicals we are talking about attract very high tariffs. So, if the government decides to scrap tariffs and vat on all agricultural implements and materials, it will go a long way.

“The budgetary allocation is important, but we need to look at other things that can sometimes be more important than the budgetary allocation. We need to create incentives, we need to guarantee minimum price.

“Some of the things that also affect agriculture are sometimes water resources. It is not directly linked to agriculture, but it very necessary in agriculture, and there is good allocation to agriculture, such as the irrigation project.”

The President of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Ahmed Mansur has lamented that the Nigerian economy is in a very fragile state, advising that Nigerians should not expect much in the first quarter (Q1).

Mansur, who spoke to The Nation over the weekend, noted that economic activities would start picking up in the second and third quarter of 2019, stressing that the economy would not witness much improvement in the first quarter as activities would centre on general elections.

He cautioned that delay in spending on the infrastructural development would also cause further delay in economic activities in the second quarter.

“The projection of growth rate of the government of 3% is unrealistic, it would be very difficult to actualise going by the economic situations in the early 2019. In the last quarter of 2018, the economy witnessed the growth of less than 2%, which hovered between 1.5 – 1.8%,”he said.

Besides, he said another cause for concern is reduction in the budgetary allocation to the infrastructure sector compared to the previous year, noting that, “This will mean a contraction in overall development of the country’s economy. Infrastructure spending is a key to the national economic development. With the power and transport section not being put right, the manufacturing sector would be stifled.”

The MAN boss, who noted that manufacturing output in the year 2018 was not encouraging, called for concerted efforts to sustain power and transportation for the manufacturing subsector in 2019.

He said, “I will advise the government not to continue to borrow to fund budget, as the level of oil earnings cannot offset the loan, while so much money is expended on debt servicing. If this continues, it means that Naira would continue to loss its value as we do not produce enough for export, in order to earn additional forex.

“Sadly, manufacturers and the economy as a whole would continue to struggle until the Q3 of 2019, this is because the $60 bench mark for budgetary appropriation is an indication of error from the beginning, which would alter government’s projection.”

Mansur said, “Again, if the crude production improves, it would further strengthen the exchange rate; otherwise the country would be falling back on the foreign reserve. In 2018, the manufacturing sector grew by 3% and later went down to 1.5% which indicates the tragic fall in the overall performance of the economy. Manufacturing suffered loss in capacity utilization, it recorded 54% as against 57% in 2017.

“So, I will advise that the government intensify emphasis on agriculture, particularly the value chain. Recall that a lot of progress was made in the crop sector in 2018, a lot of yield increase, but unfortunately, not much was achieved in the value chain. So this has to be sustained and improved upon.

“The government should redirect its focus on the key sectors of the economy if it wants to reposition the Nigerian economy for positive growth, and to sustain the growth which would help prevent the country from sleeping back into recession.”