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The President, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Francis Meshioye, has urged state governments to prioritise the extension of electricity from state-independent power plants to manufacturing companies in the country.
Meshioye noted that the extension of electricity supply to the manufacturing companies will help ameliorate the current problem of epileptic power supply, high cost of power, and reduce the cost of production for the manufacturing companies who spend so much on diesel to run their factories.
He appealed to the federal government to make it mandatory for ministries, departments, and agencies of government to patronise Made-in-Nigeria goods in their states to encourage local manufacturers.
The MAN’s President said this on Thursday during the 41st Annual General Meeting of the Oyo/Osun/Ondo and Ekiti states branches of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria held at the MAN’s Secretariat in Ibadan.
He appealed to all state governments to work in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Works to ensure that federal roads within the states and the ones linking them are reconstructed to ease the movement of goods and persons.
He acknowledged the infrastructural developments that have taken place in the states, adding that the development had positively impacted the operating environment of its members.
He also lauded the government’s harmonisation of taxes, which, according to him, had streamlined taxes paid by manufacturers.
Meshioye lamented government reforms and policies, including the removal of fuel subsidies, floating of the naira, exchange rate policies, and an increase in the monetary policy rate, which according to him had negatively impacted the manufacturing sector.
“I acknowledge the infrastructural developments that have taken place, which have positively impacted the operating environment of our members in this branch. The construction and rehabilitation of various roads in the four states, the harmonisation of various taxes to streamline payments that companies are to make, and the invitations to various committees and board meetings. I call on you once more to ensure that this relationship is sustained and deepened.
“It is in this regard that I call on Your Excellencies to domesticate Presidential Executive Order 003 to make it mandatory for Ministries, Departments, and Agencies of Government in your states to patronise made-in-Nigeria goods. That way, local manufacturers will be encouraged, and this will create more jobs. In addition, all state governments should work in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Works to ensure that the federal roads within the states and the ones linking them are rehabilitated/reconstructed to ease the movement of goods and persons.
“We will also be glad to see that the Oyo state government quickly rehabilitates the road networks in Oluyole and Egbeda Industrial Estates. We urge the state governments to prioritise the extension of the supply of electricity from the state-independent power plants to manufacturing companies within their states, as this will help ameliorate the current problem of epileptic power supply, high cost of power, and reduce the cost of production for the manufacturing companies that spend so much on diesel to run their factories.
In his speech, the outgoing chairman of the Oyo/Osun/Ondo and Ekiti state branches, Lanre Popoola, stated that the event is meant to discuss the issues affecting industries with the intention of professing solutions to improve productivity at reduced cost.
He bemoaned challenges faced by manufacturers in the country, which ranged from infrastructure deficiencies, foreign exchange volatility, and multiple taxation.
Popoola advised that the Nigerian government must take proactive measures to promote non-oil exports, secure steady foreign direct investment and remittance inflows, promote and prioritise consumption of locally produced goods, and focus on reforming regulations to allow states, corporations, and individuals to manage their own power generation and distribution.
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