By Olu W. Onemola
\nThere has been a lot of talk in recent times about promoting \u2018Made in
\nNigeria.\u2019 From the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki\u2019s recent visit to
\nthe \u2018Made in Aba\u2019 trade fair, to the hashtag to #BuyNaijaToGrowTheNaira,
\nit is clear that Nigerians are beginning to understand that it is only our
\nconcerted and collective internal efforts as a nation that can solve our
\neconomic worries.
\nIn the early 2000s, walking around the street rocking \u2018Made in Aba\u2019 goods
\nwas synonymous with saying that you shopped at \u2018bend-down-select\u2019 markets
\nand roadside stations. Wearing leather sandals produced from the eastern
\npart of Nigeria in those early years of the new millennium, was seen as an
\nunfavourable status symbol for many – despite the hard work and expertise
\nthat had been put in to produce those goods from our local manufacturers.
\nRetrospectively, quality-wise, the shoes, clothing, bags and other \u2018Made
\nin Nigeria\u2019 goods back then, were nearly on par with their imported
\ncounterparts. However, the marker of acceptability in social circles in
\nthose days came from the fact that your \u2018Nike\u2019 products were truly made by
\n\u2018Nike, Inc.\u2019, and your \u2018Adidas\u2019 was not labelled \u2018Adadis.\u2019
\nSomewhere along the line, things changed, and Nigerians began to look
\ninwards. We began to understand that our extreme foreign consumption
\ncapacity would not fuel the domestic growth of our economy. We began to
\nrealise that Timi, Deji and Haruna, could design and produce goods that
\nwere just as good as Thomas, Dickens, and Harrisons\u2019. We began to see that
\nindigenous goods and home-grown services could be on par, or even better
\nthan those from abroad. Consequently, new small and medium scale
\nenterprises sprung up allover the country to cater for our increased
\ndemand.
\nFrom fashion to finance, from entertainment to edibles, \u2018Made in Nigeria\u2019
\nexperienced a positive boom somewhere in the mid to late 2000s. However,
\nwith this positive upsurge in our collective social mindsets towards our
\nlocal products, halfway into the second decade of this millennium,
\neffective policy thrusts to encourage the local manufacturing sector have
\nnot been formulated and\/or implemented. Even Nigeria\u2019s Public Procurement
\nAct of 2007, which is aimed at advising and assisting \u201cprocurement staff
\nto help them carry out their procurement responsibilities,\u201d fails in some
\ncritical aspects to address pushing \u2018Made in Nigeria\u2019 products.
\nQueue in Dr. Bukola Saraki, and the 8th Senate of the Federal Republic of
\nNigeria. Over the past few weeks, against the backdrop of the President
\nBuhari-led administration\u2019s efforts to boost internally generated revenue
\n(IGR), Dr. Saraki, and his colleagues have embarked on a systematic social
\nand legislative charge to encourage local producers and manufacturers.
\nWhile speaking at the \u2018Made in Aba\u2019 Trade Fair, Saraki mentioned that the
\nSenate would be working on the review and amendment of the procurement act
\nthat would ensure that Made in Nigeria goods are patronized by the
\ngovernment. Some parameters of this amendment, Saraki explained, would
\ninclude provisions that would ensure that government agencies would only
\nresort to imported goods when there are no domestic alternatives.
\nSince the last quarter of 2015, the Nigerian Naira has fallen by nearly 20
\nper cent against the US Dollar. Additionally, global oil prices have
\nfallen by over 70%. What this means is that Nigeria, an oil-rich nation
\nthat is \u201cdependent on oil and gas for 95 per cent of its export earnings,
\n35 per cent of its GDP and three-quarters of government revenue,\u201d must see
\nthis \u2018Made in Nigeria\u2019 drive being championed by Saraki and a few of his
\ncolleagues like senators Abaribe and Murray-Bruce at the National Assembly
\nas one of its options to wiggle out from the impending economic downturn
\ncaused by the decline in oil prices.
\nTo make these policies sustainable, a combined effort of both legislative
\nand executive policies must work to ensure that domestic goods should be
\npromoted through a flexible system of discounts, sales and other
\ngovernment-backed incentives. Furthermore, the Standards Organization of
\nNigeria (SON) must push for quality control of Nigerian-made goods to
\nincrease customer satisfaction. As the economic history of developing
\nnations has taught us that exports-driven economies are not fiscally
\nsustainable, on the technical side, the federal government through
\ncollaborative efforts spearheaded by the Ministry of Transport must
\nintensify its efforts to create transport networks that connect consumers
\nall across the country to locally manufactured products.
\nThe Nigerian Bureau of Statistics also has a role a major role to play in
\nthis campaign. Consumer trends need to be captured so that businesses know
\nwhere to market their products and services. Surveys can also help the
\ngovernment to measure the consumption\u00a0 habits of Nigerians, so that the
\nprogress of this \u2018Made in Nigeria\u2019 initiative can be well-documented
\novertime.
\nDevelopment cannot be imported. Neither can financial stability for
\nNigeria\u2019s economy. Accordingly, as we tighten our collective pursestrings
\nto achieve fiscal responsibility in these times, we must also alter our
\nsocial perspectives and implement the government policies that will not
\nonly protect, but also amplify the calls for bringing back \u2018Made in
\nNigeria\u2019 goods and services.
\n-Olu W. Onemola is a Senior Legislative Aide at the National Assembly, and
\nthe National Public Relations Officer of the APC Youth Forum (APYF). You
\ncan follow him @OnemolaOlu. –<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Olu W. Onemola There has been a lot of talk in recent times about promoting \u2018Made in Nigeria.\u2019 From the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki\u2019s recent visit to the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40571,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46491","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n