Bringing Back ‘Made in Nigeria’

By Olu W. Onemola
There has been a lot of talk in recent times about promoting ‘Made in
Nigeria.’ From the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki’s recent visit to
the ‘Made in Aba’ trade fair, to the hashtag to #BuyNaijaToGrowTheNaira,
it is clear that Nigerians are beginning to understand that it is only our
concerted and collective internal efforts as a nation that can solve our
economic worries.
In the early 2000s, walking around the street rocking ‘Made in Aba’ goods
was synonymous with saying that you shopped at ‘bend-down-select’ markets
and roadside stations. Wearing leather sandals produced from the eastern
part of Nigeria in those early years of the new millennium, was seen as an
unfavourable status symbol for many – despite the hard work and expertise
that had been put in to produce those goods from our local manufacturers.
Retrospectively, quality-wise, the shoes, clothing, bags and other ‘Made
in Nigeria’ goods back then, were nearly on par with their imported
counterparts. However, the marker of acceptability in social circles in
those days came from the fact that your ‘Nike’ products were truly made by
‘Nike, Inc.’, and your ‘Adidas’ was not labelled ‘Adadis.’
Somewhere along the line, things changed, and Nigerians began to look
inwards. We began to understand that our extreme foreign consumption
capacity would not fuel the domestic growth of our economy. We began to
realise that Timi, Deji and Haruna, could design and produce goods that
were just as good as Thomas, Dickens, and Harrisons’. We began to see that
indigenous goods and home-grown services could be on par, or even better
than those from abroad. Consequently, new small and medium scale
enterprises sprung up allover the country to cater for our increased
demand.
From fashion to finance, from entertainment to edibles, ‘Made in Nigeria’
experienced a positive boom somewhere in the mid to late 2000s. However,
with this positive upsurge in our collective social mindsets towards our
local products, halfway into the second decade of this millennium,
effective policy thrusts to encourage the local manufacturing sector have
not been formulated and/or implemented. Even Nigeria’s Public Procurement
Act of 2007, which is aimed at advising and assisting “procurement staff
to help them carry out their procurement responsibilities,” fails in some
critical aspects to address pushing ‘Made in Nigeria’ products.
Queue in Dr. Bukola Saraki, and the 8th Senate of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria. Over the past few weeks, against the backdrop of the President
Buhari-led administration’s efforts to boost internally generated revenue
(IGR), Dr. Saraki, and his colleagues have embarked on a systematic social
and legislative charge to encourage local producers and manufacturers.
While speaking at the ‘Made in Aba’ Trade Fair, Saraki mentioned that the
Senate would be working on the review and amendment of the procurement act
that would ensure that Made in Nigeria goods are patronized by the
government. Some parameters of this amendment, Saraki explained, would
include provisions that would ensure that government agencies would only
resort to imported goods when there are no domestic alternatives.
Since the last quarter of 2015, the Nigerian Naira has fallen by nearly 20
per cent against the US Dollar. Additionally, global oil prices have
fallen by over 70%. What this means is that Nigeria, an oil-rich nation
that is “dependent on oil and gas for 95 per cent of its export earnings,
35 per cent of its GDP and three-quarters of government revenue,” must see
this ‘Made in Nigeria’ drive being championed by Saraki and a few of his
colleagues like senators Abaribe and Murray-Bruce at the National Assembly
as one of its options to wiggle out from the impending economic downturn
caused by the decline in oil prices.
To make these policies sustainable, a combined effort of both legislative
and executive policies must work to ensure that domestic goods should be
promoted through a flexible system of discounts, sales and other
government-backed incentives. Furthermore, the Standards Organization of
Nigeria (SON) must push for quality control of Nigerian-made goods to
increase customer satisfaction. As the economic history of developing
nations has taught us that exports-driven economies are not fiscally
sustainable, on the technical side, the federal government through
collaborative efforts spearheaded by the Ministry of Transport must
intensify its efforts to create transport networks that connect consumers
all across the country to locally manufactured products.
The Nigerian Bureau of Statistics also has a role a major role to play in
this campaign. Consumer trends need to be captured so that businesses know
where to market their products and services. Surveys can also help the
government to measure the consumption  habits of Nigerians, so that the
progress of this ‘Made in Nigeria’ initiative can be well-documented
overtime.
Development cannot be imported. Neither can financial stability for
Nigeria’s economy. Accordingly, as we tighten our collective pursestrings
to achieve fiscal responsibility in these times, we must also alter our
social perspectives and implement the government policies that will not
only protect, but also amplify the calls for bringing back ‘Made in
Nigeria’ goods and services.
-Olu W. Onemola is a Senior Legislative Aide at the National Assembly, and
the National Public Relations Officer of the APC Youth Forum (APYF). You
can follow him @OnemolaOlu. –