The President of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Engr. Mansur Ahmed, has called on his members to be committed at all times in producing quality products that meet global best manufacturing standards for consumption by Nigerians and other residents.
He said, given the size of the Nigerian market, “achieving self-reliance will not only strengthen and deepen our economy but will also position us to play a dominant role in the just established African continental market”,
According to him, “I want to assure you that the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and the sector as a whole will rise to the occasion and ensure that it builds on the existing capacities and continues to improve on the quality and competitiveness of its goods and services”
He urged members of the association and other operators in the real sector to explore the opportunities in the existing policies of the government and those in the emerging continental market by improved investments, improving their manufacturing capacities and competitiveness of their goods and services in the domestic and international markets
Ahmed also called on the Federal Government to ensure effective monitoring of the implementation of Executive Order 005, in order to enhance the nation’s manufacturing sector’s competitiveness capacity and self-reliance.
He gave the charge at the opening ceremony of the association’s 3-day Made-in-Nigeria Exhibition to commemorate its 49th Annual General Meeting and 50th Anniversary celebrations in Abuja,
The industrialist pointed out that the need for effective monitoring of the Order had become imperative following the recent inauguration of the Presidential Committee on the Executive Order to ensure its implementation
The MAN leader explained that the decision to inaugurate the committee demonstrated President Buhari’s commitment to give stronger support to local production, noting that the President has, since assumption of office as Nigeria’s President, left no one in doubt of his determination to ensure that Nigerians consume what they produce.
Ahmed said that to achieve this laudable objective, the nation’s industrial sector must be supported with the right fiscal and monetary policies and also that Nigerians and other residents consume made-in-Nigeria goods and services.
In his remarks at the forum, Minister for Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, said that Made-In-Nigeria products would only translate to Nigeria’s prosperity if Nigerians fully commit to total patronage of locally made products and services.
He said: “I am working to create opportunities that will enable manufacturers sign high volume supply contracts with global retailers and wholesalers so that the world can access quality Nigerian goods, as some of those seen today.”
It would be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari had, on February 5, 2018, signed Executive Order 005, with the aim to boost local content in public procurement with science, engineering and technology components.