Posted by By Victor Ahiuma-Young on
STANDARD Organisation of Nigeria (SON), has said a major step towards revitalizing the nation's textile industry is for operators to take advantage and exploit the abundant opportunities in the garment sub-sector which he says provides over 95% apparels for the nation's youths.
STANDARD Organisation of Nigeria (SON), has said a major step towards revitalizing the nation's textile industry is for operators to take advantage and exploit the abundant opportunities in the garment sub-sector which he says provides over 95% apparels for the nation's youths.
Director-General of SON, Dr. John Akanya, who gave the advice while speaking at the 17th Annual Education Conference of the National Union of Textile, Garment, Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN), held recently in Kano, Kano State, also stressed the need for the industry to be quality and export-driven in the sector's resuscitation efforts.
Akanya, who was represented at the conference by an official in the organisation, lamented that the downturn in the fortunes of the nation's textile industry resulted partly from the misguided interest and appetite of Nigerians for foreign goods, who were ignorant of the consequences of such actions.
He noted, however, the present government's efforts to resuscitate the industry by placing a ban on imported textiles and the efforts by the Customs administration to enforce such, through confiscation and better policing of the nation's borders, in addition to the Export-Expansion-Grant (EEG) scheme which provides succour to the manufacturers of export goods through relief on raw materials, machinery, and equipment imported for the manufacture of products for exports.
'We can take advantage of this scheme to focus on the export of our products to other countries through collaboration with the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC). We can also look inward and adopt the 'Local Content Initiative" so as to know the percentage of our local raw materials which can be utilized in the manufacture of our textile needs, through collaboration with the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) and the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO). Also, diversification from the traditional African wax/superprint fabrics to other aspects like dresses, shirts, blinds, upholsteries, uniforms, knitted fabrics e.t.c. would give the needed boost. Added to this is serious marketing drive and promotions to sell our products and bring them to the knowledge of Nigerians. The result of these measures will also lead to the creation of support industries solely to manufacture items (raw materials) necessary for the textile industry, which would have otherwise been imported," he affirmed.