By Ademola Hussaini, Lagos
The Manufacturers Associations of Nigeria (MAN) has emphatically said smuggling and other trade malpractices such counterfeiting and product cloning on most of the sectoral groupings in the manufacturing sector has been affirmed by the closure of virtually all the textile manufacturing concerns in the country due largely to volume of smuggling of textile materials into the country.
Hitherto, the association noted that manufacturing hubs in Kano, Kaduna and Lagos are now solitary camps with most of their factories sheds now used as event centers and warehouses to store smuggled textile materials.
MAN director-general, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, explained that this is not the best of times for its members operating textile industries in Nigeria as product cloning and counterfeiting already took tolls on their operations thereby rendering them incapable in the textile business.
Ajayi-Kadir noted that the effect of smuggling products is the biggest challenge facing its members nationwide currently, especially those in the textile industry, adding that it has taking large chunk of their investments with many of them no longer able to meet their financial obligations with banks over loan debts.
According to him, there is no doubt that the country’s comatose textile sector has been a great concern for MAN and the present government under President Muhammadu Buhari, saying that absolute ban on importation of cotton into the country could be the lasting remedy towards reviving the country’s moribund textile industry.
Speaking further, the MAN director-general, noted that the association has present its position to the Federal Government on the need to establish an anti-smuggling task force for surveillance, constant raiding of Nigerian markets in a bid to complement the Nigerian Customs Service and other agencies at the borders in combating the challenges of smuggling and other trade mal-practices to salvage downturn in manufacturing sector.
“The damaging and scourging effects of smuggling and other trade malpractices were heavy on the manufacturing sector last year. MAN position on smuggling and other trade malpractices such counterfeiting and product cloning on most of the sectoral groupings in the manufacturing sector has been affirmed by the closure of virtually all the textile manufacturing concerns in the country due largely to volume of smuggling of textile materials into the country.
“The hitherto manufacturing hubs in Kano, Kaduna and Lagos are now solitary camps with most of their factory sheds now used as event centers and warehouses to store smuggled textile materials. Apart from smuggling, today, unscrupulous Nigerians and foreigners also take well-selling Nigerian products to Asia, mass produce and dump these products into the Nigerian market. This has been a huge challenge to manufacturers as market shares, sales and profit dwindle in the circumstance. Of course, these trade malpractices are responsible for sub-optimal utilization of existing capacity, low investment and employment in the sector,” Ajayi-Kadir said.
Speaking further, he stated, “in the course of last year, the position of MAN was presented to the Government and extensively discussed in one of the meetings of the Presidential Industrial Policy and Competitiveness Advisory Council. It was recommended that an anti-smuggling task force be established for surveillance, constant raiding of Nigerian markets and complement the efforts of the Nigerian Customs Service and other agencies at the borders in combating the challenges of smuggling and other trade mal-practices. Our expectation is that Government would put in place necessary modalities to ensure the smooth take off of the task force hopefully within the first quarter of 2019.”
He, however, seek for further empowerment of the Nigerian Customs Service and other law enforcement agencies to effectively protect the country’s borders against these nefarious activities, including deploying of appropriate border surveillance technology and improve the logistic arrangements at the borders in terms of vehicles, communication equipment, cameras, drones etc.
