A positive consequence of the economic recession is that it has encouraged Nigerians, entrepreneurs, and manufacturers to patronise Nigerian-made goods and produce goods locally at the same time. This is a departure from the past where Nigerians had an overwhelming preference for imported products.
In line with this and to support local manufacturers in their bid to produce goods indigenously, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki announced the soft launch of the Made-In-Nigeria challenge.
Making the announcement in a Facebook post, Saraki wrote: “This campaign is organised to showcase everyday products that are used by Nigerians and produced by Nigerians locally that serves as an alternative to imported products. The next few weeks, we hope to identify products and ideas that can be matched with investors and government agencies.
“To wrap up the Challenge, in March, we will be inviting some of the finalists to a Made In Nigeria Roundtable at the Senate. This Roundtable will allow us, legislators, Government Agencies, business owners, and everyday Nigerian consumers to review and update the report of NASSBER, the National Assembly Business Environment Roundtable, which was held in 2016 to improve the ease of doing business in the country.”
Saraki concluded: “As part of Senate’s oversight of government agencies, we will also use the opportunity to get feedback on the Public Procurement Act passed by Senate in 2016 which mandates government agencies to give preference to local manufacturers in Procurement of goods and services.”
The #Made-In-Nigeria challenge is for manufacturers who source 70% of their raw materials within the country and are ready substitutes to imported goods. The manufacturers who meet this requirement are expected to post videos not more 3 minutes (and not less than 45 seconds) on Twitter using the hashtag #MadeInNigeria.
