Manufacturers Advocate Allocations Of Foreign Exchange To Productive Sector

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), has said, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) should be prevailed upon to take effective action towards allocations of foreign exchange to the productive sector.

The association stated this in its reaction to President Bola Tinubu inauguration speech.

The director-general of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir said: “change in administration is usually greeted with expectations and as an advocacy group, we surely look forward to a number of policy changes and decisions.

“It is therefore highly commendable and an assurance of better days ahead to hear the President saying that his industrial policy will utilise the full range of fiscal measures to promote domestic manufacturing and lessen import dependency.

“For me, this is a positive development. It is an unmistakable indication of a far-sighted strategic choice. One that is borne out of a deep reflection on the current inclement manufacturing environment and the need to stop the drift into inglorious de-industrialisation of the Nigerian economy.”

He noted that, the issues of multiple and often times, punitive taxation; conflicting and contradictory fiscal and monetary policy measures; skewed and poor management of the foreign exchange regime and the long overdue stoppage of the fuel subsidy were addressed in the President’s speech, believing they resonate with manufacturers in particular and the business community in general.

Ajayi-Kadir said,  a marching order is needed to move the Central Bank towards a unified exchange rate, noting that, “we also expect that, in line with President promise to enable a supportive fiscal policy regime, the President will order a reversal of the unwarranted violation of the government’s three-year excise escalation roadmap on alcoholic beverages and tobacco.

“As we have shown, the latest hike as contained in the 2023 Fiscal Policy Measures is not only going to ruin the affected sectors, it will be counterproductive for government revenue in the near future.

Our infrastructure has remained inadequate and so the ongoing efforts of the government have to be intensified and this again was mentioned by the newly inaugurated President.”

To pursue the unification of the exchange rate, he said, the CBN should be prevailed upon to take effective action to give priority to the allocations of foreign exchange to the productive sector, particularly, to manufacturers to import raw materials, spares, and machinery that are not locally available.

He called for Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to admit all qualified applicant companies into the Eligible Customer Scheme in order to allow them access to power as stipulated in the Electric Power Sector Reform Act 2005; direct all relevant agencies of government to ensure that the electronic call-up system at ports aimed at redressing the congestion works without fail; revisit the Finance Bill 2022 to ensure it includes the critical inputs of the organised private sector; among others.