The new industrial master plan
President Goodluck Jonathan recently launched two ambitious programmes designed to revamp and transform Nigeria’s industrial landscape, and grow small and medium scale enterprises. The policy, code-named Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP), sets out a comprehensive master plan for the country’s industrialisation, with the target to enhance job creation and conserve foreign exchange.
According to the president, the main goal of the industrial road map “is to increase the contribution of the manufacturing sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from the present four percent to more than 10 percent over the next five years”. This, the President explained at the launch in Abuja, would boost the nation’s annual revenue earnings from the manufacturing sector by up to N5 trillion per annum, while the small and medium enterprises will be taken care of on the platform of National Enterprise Development Programme (NEDEP), with emphasis on inclusive growth.
Taken together, the new industrial master plan with its noble objectives is attractive on paper. It is a welcome development after decades of foot-dragging and policy flip-flops of successive governments in the country. It is, however, early in the day to give the policy a thumbs up. It is better to wait until it becomes a reality.
Oftentimes, governments in the country are not short of good policies. The problem has always been with translating such policies into reality. To succeed, the thrust of the policy should be to address the constraints plaguing our industrial sector and hampering it from playing its expected role.
Undoubtedly, Nigeria deserves a comprehensive and focused industrial road map to improve the nation’s industrial/investment climate and enhance the promotion and patronage of locally manufactured goods. At present, local industries face numerous constraints that make it hard for them to compete effectively with others in Africa, and globally.
The president has identified sectors in which Nigeria has comparative advantage and can play a leading role in Africa and, perhaps, the world. This is good thinking. We agree with him on some of the priority areas such as power for industrial use; debt reduction cost; mobilisation of funds for the real sector; improvement of investment climate; innovation and raising the standard of locally-manufactured products. Nonetheless, in order to fast-track industrialisation and meet set targets, government should ensure the sustainability and effectiveness of the National Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Council and the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan Presidential Advisory Group that it has promised to set up soon to guide the faithful implementation of the plan. Professionals with the necessary expertise should be appointed to serve on the council. There is also need for sincerity of purpose in their assignment. The policy should not be mere polemical sloganeering to catch votes.
In executing the industrial policy, we advise that solid minerals should be given priority attention. This is one sector that has not been fully explored. Yet, it has the potential to be a big source of revenue, after oil. Also, the enterprise zones planned in every state under the SMEs should be well equipped with infrastructure for small businesses to thrive. That is one of the ways to boost skills, employment generation, economic linkages and rural industrialisation.
The need for proper coordination and synergy, effectiveness and efficient utilisation of resources should be firmly kept in view if this policy is not to fail like similar ones enunciated in the past.
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