Many things make Nigeria unfriendly for investors, especially in pharmaceutical business. Some of these things, according to the Chief Executive Officer of Emzor Pharmaceuticals, Dr Stella Okoli, are epileptic power, decaying infrastructure and lack of incentives. Despite these challenges, she still has faith in Nigeria. Things, she tells Assistant Editor MUYIWA LUCAS, in this interview, will get better if the government and the people patronise made-in-Nigeria goods.
Nigeria’s business environment is believed to be peculiar. How are you coping?
The world has become a tougher place and it is getting tougher daily. Emzor is a Nigerian company and Nigeria is not left out of global happenings; we have experienced these hard economic climate. But we try to do our best and we look for a window of opportunity and we try and tap in there. Some of the people we started with have either fallen by the way side or are not as successful as we are. Several factors account for this.
What is responsible for the high mortality rate of businesses in the country?
Bank loans with high interest rate is one of the major factors. Since we don’t have long-term money in this country, it is a great challenge. But we, by the special grace of God, will continue to make our mark. I tell people that this is our country and God didn’t make a mistake to put us here; so everybody should work hard to make a mark. Nigeria is the investment destination of the world, so why can’t we, the owners of the country, excel and be at the top of the economy? Why should only expatriates come in and take away the best of our country?
Would you say investing in the country is worth the while given the policy inconsistencies and an unfriendly business environment?
I think it is a hard question to answer. We invested nearly 30 years ago when the naira was stronger in value than the United States dollars; but now the reverse is the case. So if you look at it from that perspective, you may probably say we lost some values, but that is also very difficult to measure. We don’t regret our investment here, we just find a way to be better; every mistake made in business is an opportunity to learn and to move forward. My definition of success is “falling down seven times and getting up eight times.” It is worth investing in Nigeria; we may not get it right all the time but I can tell you that our country is a land of milk and honey; we may not get everything right 100 per cent, but we are on the road to that. If you read Mr. President’s Transformation Agenda, and if it is well implemented and actualised, then this country will be a force to be reckoned with globally. Some of the challenges we have is the problem of implementation; and that is where leadership comes in-you have to constantly measure, monitor, strategise, re-strategise and fine tune and put the enabling environment in place for business to flourish.
The state of the health sector is appalling. What do you think is needed to revive the sector?
The situation is disheartening because we had the best medical school before; very brilliant students who go abroad to do specialist courses. But what has happened is that there has been a sort of decay in the country. The education system is not working well and that has affected the health sector because if you are not churning out knowledgeable medical students, how on earth are they going to be good doctors and run the health system properly? It is this same thing that has affected all the para medics-nurses, pharmacists, physiotherapists and the others. The other problem is that of brain drain as all the brilliant people trained in Nigeria have left and gone abroad where they are making their marks, especially in science related fields. Most of these people love this country and would like to come back. They should be attracted to return. People should be trained and retrained to improve their knowledge base.
In developing the sector, will Emzor Pharmaceutical be involved in setting up training centres for pharmaceutical technicians?
Yes, we are already doing that, because we have some subsidiaries. Once you are in a medical institution or health care sector, there are a lot of opportunities. For instance, we have a subsidiary called Emzor Hesco, which is to provide hospital equipment and sundries. In University of Ibadan, we have set up a shop in the hospital where doctors can rent these critical equipment for use; it is done in partnership with ASCOLAB of Germany. Then we are also paying a lot of attention to training because that is what has taken us this far. The largest room in the world is improvement and our people are excited about this.
Counterfeiting is a major problem in the country. How have you been able to prevent Emzor paracetamol from being counterfeited?
When we started, we didn’t know much about manufacturing, but we got a lot of tips from people all over the world who were into manufacturing before us. We have tamper -proof packaging. We also ensure that our products are popular and affordable and are also everywhere. They start faking a product that is popular but not available and affordable. What we do is that we have devices like ROPP caps for our liquids and for the tablets we try to use tamper by the blisters. We ensure we have the right seal to make sure it is tamper proof and make sure we use the right products and ensure our quality is at the top. We do not cut corners at all because it is dangerous to do so. We also work with all our agencies, such as NAFDAC (National Agency for Foods Drugs Administration and Control) to ensure that we work together to minimise fake drugs or abolish it.
There is Made-in-Nigeria policy which the government has failed to implement. How much impact does this have on local investors?
It is unfortunate that we don’t seem to be patriotic enough in Nigeria. Everywhere you go, it is the citizens that build their country; so we would only be deceiving ourselves to think that foreigners will build our country for us. It is sad that government does not patronise Made-in-Nigeria goods. In the pharmaceutical industry, the national drug policy is that 70 per cent of the drugs used in the hospitals should come from local manufacturers; but most of the new entrants don’t even know that this policy exists. We have called the attention of the powers-that-be and we have been promised that it will be addressed, and we shall hold them to their words.
Any plan of getting quoted on the Stock Exchange?
Very soon, that will happen. You have to know that when you go to the market, you don’t just go there for jamboree to join the bandwagon. You go there when you are ready and know what you are doing, equipped with good information. What we are doing at the moment is to gather information and then we are preparing ourself. The market will punish you if you are not ready before you go in to it.
What does it feel like being a female CEO managing such a successful pharmaceutical company?
It is a really a tough job, but God does not give you a thing without giving you the grace to carry it. I was going to study engineering but I found myself in pharmacy, and in manufacturing for that matter. Manufacturing in a Third World country can be very challenging; but we are still marching on, we thank God for that. I say to people, what you can do today, please don’t leave it till tomorrow because it might be too late. It is hard sometimes for people to understand. But through consistency, and reinforcing, I have been able to hold on, with the support of people around me. I have good people around me that can represent me well. You have to invest in people- by training and retraining them constantly. Even ourselves, we have to train and retrain constantly. The essence of life is to give hope to people and believe in them. You cannot say you have a successful company or business when people around you don’t know what is happening. Through consistent training, I can tell you that I have been able to raise champions that are now even better than myself.
Would you say your vision for Emzor Pharmaceuticals has been realised?
The vision for Emzor is to be a world-class leader in the healthcare sector. The healthcare industry is expanding all the time. We are trying our best because we have subsidiaries- we are producing quality products at affordable prices; we now have Emzor Hescco, which is the hospital arm. We recently had an exhibition of our hospital equipment like beds, theatre equipment, etc. We have “well-o-cracy” which is our mantra; we see a world where everyone is healthy and have access to affordable drugs and services; this is our gift to the world and to Nigerians.
There are a few people left in your line of business. Why do you think this is so?
The Nigerian environment, as it is, is not investment friendly because if you don’t have power, infrastructure, incentives, then there is a problem. Investment will only flow to a place where you have these facilities. In Nigeria there is a lot of attempts and things being done to make sure that the situation changes because when that happens, it is those that have been steadfast and truly believe in Nigeria that will benefit; I believe in my country, it is just that we are not getting things right but that does not stop me from being consistent because I know that things will get better, and in this, we have to thank the press because you have also been consistent in sensitising people. I am sure that we are going to get a better Nigeria. When I was born, Nigeria was beautiful; when I started my business, Nigeria was good, but along the line it changed; however, we thank God now because we are now going to take our rightful place as the giant of Africa. Then real investors will come in but you must note that the most important investor in any country is the people of that country because if we don’t invest in our country who will do so for us genuinely? What this means is that Nigerians need to be empowered to be able to do this, and what we make in Nigeria must be used by Nigerians; that is the next job to be done. There were more players in the sector before the indigenous manufacturers entered the scene. There hasn’t been a lot of encouragement, and it has really been neglected over the years. You will find out that people have taken their money and put it elsewhere to either trade or do other businesses. But with what the minister and banks are doing, we are planning to revive the sector and we are hopeful that we will be lucky to do this. It is a security for a country to ensure that it has its own pharmaceuticals because if we don’t and there is a crisis in the country, it means that we will continue to depend on outsiders for something that is vital to us.
If you were made the Minister of Trade, Commerce and Industry, what will be your immediate priority?
I will not be made minister of trade, commerce and industry because I am actually a mother of ministers. I am a grandmother; in my capacity, I am in advocacy and I play advisory roles to ministers, so I will continue in that role. If I had wanted to be a minister, then it would have been several years ago. But now, I am in advocacy for the betterment of the youth and the industry. But if I were, I will create a more enabling environment; they are trying presently, but a lot more still needs to be done. Thank God, the president has unveiled the master plan for industrial growth, but that is at the micro and SMEs (Small and Medium Scale Enterprises) level. We must grow industrial giants in this country at all levels and across all fields of human endeavour so that our people can know that they can do it and they can also be “Bill Gates.” It is important that it is done. There must be a long term fund in this country without which industries cannot survive in this country.
Can you give the younger generation tips on how to own a successful business?
What is worth doing at all, is worth doing well. Don’t cut corners in your business, you need to have passion, be committed, love what you do, because if you don’t love what you do, then you can’t be successful; you need to plan and look at world best practice and benchmark. You need to study role models you want to be like; read their success stories, and don’t queue into the negative side of life, because in this country, there are a lot of people that like to tell stories; story tellers are time wasters, and you can’t afford that. You should associate yourself with people who are focused and read a lot of books and leverage on the influence of internet positively. It is a lot easier for people to succeed these days than when we started because you can now easily get access to information that can help your business. Don’t look at the negatives; and don’t be in a rush to make money; the most important thing in life is to make your people happier than when you met them. It is very important that you make that mark and then you also have fulfilment. God wants you to make a difference and you have to make the difference.
How do you unwind with your tight schedule?
What I find out is that the presence of the Lord is awesome. I unwind listening to Christian music and tapes; that is the best for me. I also read books and try to mix with my friends.
