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By Gabriel Dike
Former Minister of Industry, Chief Nike Akande, and Chairman, Erisco Foods Limited, Chief Eric Umeofia, have made a passionate appeal to the Federal Government to promote the production and consumption of local manufactured goods to boost nation’s the economy.
Akande and Umeofia decried the over reliance on imported goods by Nigerians, which they both said drains the nation’s foreign exchange and kills local manufacturers. They have therefore advised government to overhaul the nation’s import policy.
The ex-minister and the Erisco Foods Ltd boss spoke at the 18th Mike Okonkwo Annual Lecture in Lagos, with the theme, “Made in Nigeria Products: Vehicle for Sustainable Development”, which attracted prominent Nigerians, including Mazi Samuel Ohuabunwa, General Overseer of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Bishop Mike Okonkwo and his wife, Bishop Peace Okonkwo, Prof. Hope Eghagha, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and heads of schools.
Akande, who is also the LCCI President, said the theme of the lecture was timely and an opportunity for the Federal Government to promote economic growth in the country by supporting local manufacturers of goods.
She disclosed that the decline of oil revenue has made Nigerians to begin to look inward and became less dependant on imported goods, adding “we must take steps to reduce our reliance on oil and look at other sources of income.”
Akande said: “For every foreign good we buy, we are developing other countries’ economies while neglecting ours. Patronising our goods will boost employment generation as the multiplier effect of patronising local products is the demand of labour.
“We should be able to produce the food we eat, make the clothes we wear, produce most of the things we use and create the right environment for our young people to be able to benefit and create jobs through technology.
“My greatest joy is to see a Nigeria that moves from import dependence to self-sufficiency in local production and become an export-led economy in goods and services.”
For his part, Umeofia urged Nigerians to join the campaign to promote the consumption of local manufactured goods and revealed that indigenous producers are not being supported to boost the economy rather some cabals are making it difficult for them to survive.
