Nigeria spends $4bn annually on textile importation – DG, NTMA

The director-general of the Nigerian Textile Manufacturers Association (NTMA), Mr Hamma Kwajaffa, has said that Nigeria spends $4 billion dollars annually importing textiles and readymade clothing.

Speaking during a media parley in Abuja, Kwajaffa stressed that Nigeria has the potential to produce for the local market and also export to the ECOWAS market of 175 million people, as well as to the developed world, noting that the unprecedented harsh environment has no doubt dealt a serious blow to the already fragile industry.

He said: “Despite government’s intention to revive the sector, the reality on ground continues to be worrisome. The prevailing unprecedented harsh environment has no doubt dealt a serious blow to the already fragile industry. Unless urgent steps are taken by the government to address key issues raised by the industry, the ray of hope that had arisen from the recent government initiatives may get extinguished.”

According to him, “The Influx of smuggled goods continues to flood major textile markets in Kantin Kwari; Kano; Balogun and Oshodi, Lagos. It not only undermines the local industry, steal our jobs, and deprive government of revenue, it is a drain on Nigeria’s precarious foreign exchange reserves.”

He commended the federal government for the interest it has shown in reviving the Nigerian textile industry, urging the government to put incentives to attract investors in the sector.

“Other developing countries are helping their textile industry in many ways due to its high employment potential. Ethiopia has among the most competitive power tariff at 4 US Cents/Kwh, which is a fifth of the power cost in Nigeria. Recently, India, which is the second largest textile producer in the world after China, announced a $ 1 bn incentive package for the textile and apparel industry to create 10 million jobs in three years,” he added.

Commenting on the state of the Nigerian textile sector, the former director-general of NTMA, Mr Jaiyeola Olarewaju, said benefits of the sector is endless.

‘‘The benefits from a competitive textile industry in Nigeria are numerous.”