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By Merit Ibe, [email protected]
Stakeholders in the paper and pulp industry have lamented high importation of raw materials to meet demand for paper products.
The operators, who bared their minds at a seminar organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) with the theme: “Challenges, Prospects and Raw Materials Demand in the Printing, Packaging and Publishing Industry,” noted that despite huge arable land and abundant forest resources across the country, Nigeria still relies on importation, calling for revamping of the paper and print industry to minimally meet domestic capacity production of three million metric tonnes.
President of the chamber, Dr Michael Olawale-Cole, who cited a report that Nigeria is Africa’s second largest importer of printing and paper processing technologies, decried that the country’s paper, printing and publishing industry is a paradox that defies logic.
Olawale-Cole noted that the country’s installed production capacity remained at abysmally low level of 200 thousand metric tons, thereby making importation of raw materials inevitable.
The LCCI president called for legislative backing and harmonised regulatory framework for printing, packaging and publishing to spur investment in critical midstream and downstream segment of the value chain.
He stressed the need to chart the course for self-sufficiency in production of raw materials by exploring opportunities for production of fibrous and cellulose materials from many seasonal plants in addition to wood.
For her part, the chairperson of the Printing, Publishing & Allied Group of LCCI, Princess Layo Okeowo, noted that without doubt, the industry was grappling with lots of challenges which affect the smooth running of the activities of the sector.
She reeled out the challenges to include but not limited to high cost of paper; in which various factors come into play to influence the increase in paper prices like electricity supply and fuel cost, paper mill closures and also increased demands for tissue papers.
Other challenges she emphasied were high foreign exchange; continuous depreciation of the Naira, collapsed infrastructure and poor funding of the sector.
She said the high cost associated with the importation of pulp and paper products is a huge issue as the integrated pulp and paper mills in Nigeria depend overwhelmingly on imported long fibre pulp.
“The issues of inadequate research effort are not being supported towards the conversion and utilisation of fibrous raw materials into pulp and paper and mills development in Nigeria.”
Proffering solution to the challenges, she noted that innovation by researchers has shown that Kenaf can be used in paper production which offers environmental advantages over reproducing paper from trees.
“Thus, Kenaf can produce paper that requires less energy while substantially reducing environmental pollution.
She opined that $10million can create a cluster of paper mills of about 500- 600 all over the nation.
This she said will improve foreign exchange and the economy at large.
Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Ogun State, Kikelomo Longe, who noted that the gap between supply and demand was enormous, said the demand in the paper industry is huge.
The commissioner disclosed that in an effort to combat the situation in the pulp and paper sector, the Federal Government, through the Federel Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, is currently working towards the resuscitation and strategic development by setting up an inter-agency committee which has been mandated to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the collapse of the privatisation of paper mills.
She noted that with the help of the agency, government and other relevant stakeholders, Nigeria’s paper industry can source a greater percentage of its raw materials locally and reduce the over dependence on importation.
