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| Senator John Owan Enoh, Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment |
The Federal Government has unveiled a comprehensive Nigeria Industrial Policy aimed at transforming the country from a trading economy into a value-adding industrial nation, with stakeholders stressing that effective implementation and accountability will determine its success.
Speaking at a high-level engagement with members of the Nigerian Guild of Editors in Lagos, the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Senator John Owan Enoh, said industrialization remained the backbone of competitiveness among nations and urged stakeholders to prioritise the strengthening of domestic industries.
The minister said, “Relations between countries are governed by trade and investment, but you need to get your industry right to be competitive. Success should not be measured in footnotes but in factories and productivity.”
He described industrialization as a discipline and commitment, noting that the new industrial policy provided a structured framework for Nigeria’s industrial development. He also called on the media to drive national discourse on productivity, value chains and industrial growth.
The Director-General of the Nigerian Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Prof. Ayo Omotayo, said Nigeria’s previous industrial policies failed largely due to the absence of clear implementation strategies.
According to him, the new policy introduces a detailed implementation matrix outlining strategic objectives, key actors, timelines, deliverables and expected outcomes.
Omotayo said key components of the implementation strategy include enforcing the Nigeria First policy to boost patronage of locally made goods, strengthening manufacturing through technology and innovation, reducing importation of raw materials, and promoting value addition.
He added that the financial architecture of the policy proposed allocating three to five per cent of the Gross Domestic Product annually to industrial development, recapitalising the Bank of Industry to about ₦3tn, and expanding sector-specific intervention funds to ₦3tn.
The DG further disclosed plans to harmonise tax systems, provide incentives and waivers, improve access to long-term low-interest credit for micro, small and medium enterprises, and develop industrial clusters with shared infrastructure and energy facilities.
The Special Adviser to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr John Uwajumogu, said the policy was driven by the need to grow Nigeria’s economy at exponential rates to cater for its rapidly expanding population.
He said, “We need to be growing at double-digit rates. This policy is different because of the accountability framework and collaborative approach to ensure implementation.”
Uwajumogu said the Industrial Revolution Working Group had been established to coordinate stakeholders and ensure execution, adding that the media had a critical role in holding government accountable for outcomes.
The moderator of the session noted that Nigeria had not had a comprehensive industrial policy framework since the era of former military president, Ibrahim Babangida, describing the new document as possibly the country’s first true industrial policy since independence.
The Nigeria Industrial Policy was developed after consultations with the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and the organised private sector, with stakeholders identifying energy security, financing, bureaucracy, skilled manpower and patronage of local goods as key industrial challenges.