#BuyNigeria: Enough of empty talks, says Osinbajo
Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday said the government and
other stakeholders had spoken enough on the need for Nigerians to
patronise made in Nigeria products.
He said there was the need to embrace the campaign which he said
could contribute to the revival of the cotton, textile and garment
industries which is one of the goals of the present administration.
According to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media
and Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, the Vice President spoke during a
meeting he had with industry stakeholders and members of the
Implementation Committee on the National Cotton, Textile and Garment
Policy at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
While noting that the challenge of smuggling of foreign textile
materials into the country had to be tackled, Osinbajo reportedly said
overall “it is up to all of us to see that this particular initiative
works, we have talked enough.”
While stressing the benefits inherent in patronising locally-made
products, the Vice-President added, “Nigerians buying Nigerian products
is very important and it goes beyond the symbolism of wearing
Nigerian-made dresses. It is important for our economy and well-being.”
Earlier, the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment,
Mrs. Aisha Abubakar, noted that the ministry came up with the Cotton,
Textile and Garment policy, in order to provide “a suit of interventions
holistically across the value chain, including encouraging local
patronage, controlling smuggling, production of improved seedling, cost
of energy, cost of funds, training and upgrading and modernization
of infrastructure.”
She added that past attempts to revive the industries failed because they had addressed only the issue of funding.
Leading the stakeholders to the meeting was the General Secretary
of the National Union of Garment and Textile Workers of Nigeria,
Mr. Issa Aremu, who praised the Buhari presidency of “walking the
talk,” explaining that the APC presidential ticket had promised to
revamp the industry during the electioneering campaigns last year.
Members of the committee comprising of both government officials
and industry stakeholders were said to have earlier highlighted a number
of strategies for the revival of the cotton, textile and garments
industries.
The strategies include the promotion of Nigeria-made dresses among others.
Specifically the committee is proposing a “Wear Naija Day,” where
public officials and employees of corporate organisations would all wear
locally made fabric.
The Federal Government through the Ministry of Industry, Trade and
Investment had articulated a new policy to revamp the industries through
a number of interventions including battling smuggling in order to
attain a 15 percent reduction by next year, facilitating assess to
funding for the sector, addressing the challenges of energy, lifting the
ban on importation of finished products and using the duties and levies
raised therefrom to support the industries, among several other
strategies.
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