Poor energy supply shrinking Nnewi’s manufacturing capacity, fueling unemployment in Anambra –Lawmaker

From Obinna Odogwu, Awka

National Assembly member representing Nnewi North, Nnewi South and Ekwusigo Federal Constituency, Chris Azubogu, yesterday, lamented that poor energy supply to Nnewi Industrial Cluster was affecting the area negatively.

Azubogu said that an energy audit he carried out showed that the industrial hub was underserved and as a result, the manufacturing capacity of the industrial zone has dwindled.

In a statement from his media office issued by Emeka Onyia, the lawmaker lamented that the ugly situation has increased the rate of unemployment in the area and could worsen if not addressed. “In my effort to ascertain the energy requirements for one of Nigeria’s oldest and only surviving indigenous manufacturing hubs (Nnewi Industrial Cluster), I invested in energy audit that proved that the cluster was underserved, which is one of the major contributory factors to the dwindling manufacturing capacity within the cluster. This development if left unresolved, will continue to fuel the growing employment crisis and sabotage efforts toward energising the economy.

“At this stage, we are using the generated data from the energy audit to make strategic requests and efforts toward solving energy needs for our businesses.”

“A system that faces a growing number of unemployed youths must design means of stimulating her productive sector which will create jobs. Here, we are pushing towards solving this identified problem.

“With the coming of Mr Governor, Charles Chukwuma Soludo-led Anambra State and the creation of the state Ministry of Power, there is hope in resolving the energy question for our manufacturing sector and I hope that the data we generated during our energy audit will be of use as the governor searches for the needed solutions”, he said.

Azubogu, who is the Anambra South senatorial candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) for the 2023 election, said that if elected, he would continue to push for better deals for the state.

“If elected as a senator, I will continue to be part of the legislative/executive synergy towards crashing the cost of manufacturing in the Nnewi Manufacturing Cluster to be competitive, especially with the coming of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfFCTA)”, he said.