Coronavirus: Manufacturers Seeks Alternative To China For Raw Material
GILBERT EKUGBE
Following the outbreak of the deadly Coronavirus that has left many dead in its wake, manufacturers in Nigeria have started to look elsewhere for raw materials, machinery and equipment.
Coronavirus broke out in China late last year but was more pronounced from January, and today it is affecting global economy.
China offers a cheap source for manufacturing inputs but the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) said the safety of Nigerians is of greatest importance as most of its members can always get alternatives to keep their factories running.
The president, MAN, Engineer Mansur Ahmed, at a press conference to herald the 2020 edition of the Nigeria, Manufacturing, and Equipment/NIRAM Expo, scheduled for 10-12, March 2020 in Lagos, said “Obviously, our members have had to deal with the issue in the best way they can. They have started looking elsewhere for importation of raw materials, equipment and machinery. For many of these items, they do have alternatives, maybe the Chinese products would be a little cheaper, but they can always get an alternative if they need to.”
He added: “We know that the coronavirus has affected oil prices because the Chinese economy has gone into a slow down due to the virus and the demand for oil has gone down and it has impacted the international oil prices. We have been engaging government on this and the first thing is to ensure that the virus does not get into our shores and we hope that the health authority at all levels is doing everything possible to protect the nation. I believe it will be done because we were very successful during the Ebola outbreak. If we bring the same level of commitment and effort, we will be able to protect ourselves from this deadly virus.”
On the backward integration policy of the government, he said he wants the policy sustained and expanded to other sectors of the economy as most of its members have continued to source for their raw materials locally
He said this year’s NME/NIRAM Expo is unique in many ways as one of its striking new features is the direct collaboration between MAN and RMRDC to sustain the running of the EXPO after the exit of Clarion Events West Africa as event organizers.
“Owing to the significant impact the Expo has had on the industrial sector and the economy at large, both organizations deemed it necessary to build on the success so far and present an improved Expo this year which would be highly beneficial to all participants,” he said.
According to him, the Expo is now widely considered as the leading and most comprehensive event which encompasses every aspect of the manufacturing value chain has this year been designed to address pertinent concerns for the eventual takeoff of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) come July this year.
“The theme for this year is: “The Fourth Industrial Revolution and the Nigerian Manufacturing sector”. The theme is instructive at a time like this as it is pertinent for stakeholders to critically discuss how to tap into the opportunities the Fourth Industrial Revolution presents at the same time remaining competitive in a fast-developing industrial space,” he added.
He noted that the Expo which was initiated as a response to the government’s commitment to industrialization and Nigeria’s need to diversify the economy has so far been fulfilling the core of its mandate as attested by participants who constantly make the international manufacturing and equipment gathering a priority event.
Also speaking at the event, the Director-General, Raw Materials Research and Development (RMRDC), Prof. Hussain Ibrahim, said in co-locating these events, both RMRDC and MAN have demonstrated rare confidence and camaraderie among themselves for the purpose of hastening national industrial development.
Represented by the Lagos State Coordinator, RMRDC, Tokunbo Habeeb, he said the NIRAM Expo was conceived in 2012 to create a unique platform where manufacturers could seamlessly source for the much needed raw materials and benefit from research and development breakthroughs.
He noted that NIRAM Expo has therefore brought about the sustainable balance of resource-based Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) having access to current research and development findings from the nation’s reservoir of knowledge.
“Permit me to highlight on the achievements of NIRAM Expo on the national economy, which include the creation of awareness on agricultural and mineral resources for which the country endowed and has comparative advantage in value addition such as cassava, maize, sorghum, limestone, gypsum, tropical fruits, kaolin, phosphate, iron, and steel, etc as well as the noticeable increase in capacity utilization 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,” he added
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