OPS SET AGENDA FOR NEW INDUSTRY MINISTER

The Organized Private Sector (OPS) has set agenda for the newly appointed Commerce and Industry Minister, Alhaji Jubril Martins-Kuye. The National President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Dr. Simon Chukwuemeka Okolo has said that the manufacturing sector in Nigeria has experienced stunted growth partly as a result of policy inconsistencies and reversals.

In a chat with Daily Sun recently, he said that the issue of inconsistent policy formulation has stifled the expected growth of the manufacturing sector which the new minister must look into.

Said he; “We need attitudinal change in policy formulation and implementation. To attain the success required for in governance and for rapid development, we need a pragmatic shift from the negative conducts in governance to a more conventional base rule on general and global practice of doing business in government.”

He noted that the manufacturing sector was sensitive and requires more frantic and careful approach by experienced individuals whose decisions could make a positive impact to enable it to contribute maximally to a sustainable development of the economy.

He said that the Minister should introduce policy that would be supportive of vision 20:2020

He noted that manufacturing sector in Nigeria has suffered a lot of setbacks despite the on going reforms outlined in the 7 point agenda of the federal government.

“The challenges of the global melt down, no doubt, heightened the uncompetitive ness. The challenges' facing the government was to arrest the continued decay of our major infrastructural facilities especially in the power sector. Furthermore, the operational capacities of the law enforcement agencies to guarantee security of lives and property must be improved,” he said.

For the Nigerian manufacturing sector to grow, Okolo, who is also a Member of Presidential Adviser Council said infrastructural facilities in the country must have to be improved upon in order for the manufacturing sectors to contribute more to the Gross Domestic Projects (GDP).

He noted that the manufacturing sector should be contributing more than 35 percent to the GDP of the country but presently contributing less than 10 percent and this is unhealthy for the economy.

He said that in order to reduce the power challenges facing the manufacturers the Minister should try to relate with minister of power to encourage private participations in Independent power project (IPP) to boost power generation and supply.

He said that the manufacturing sector were spending fortunes on power generation even as they expressed concern over inadequate funding of the real sector of the economy.