Epina Technologies Limited, has disclosed that, globally, ceramics market has been projected to reach US$408 billion by 2018 and that Nigeria currently occupies 9th position among world’s ceramics consumers and remains the only country among the emerging economies without export.
In a parley with pressmen, the C.E.O of Epina technologies Ltd., Prof. Patrick Oaikhinan, said Nigeria currently imports over US$600 million worth of ceramics products annually, yet there is no appropriate strategy in place for the development of ceramics industry that can create over 1.2 million direct and indirect jobs in Nigeria.
“Thus there is urgent need to bring together a network of partners from across the world to set a new paradigm for pacing its development in Nigeria. We will be organizing the 2014 International Ceramics Trade Fair in Sheraton Hotel on the 27th-28th August and so far we have received confirmation for exhibition and attendance from several exhibitors from America, Britain, China, Germany, India, Spain and South Africa. We are expecting ceramics professionals, industry players, stakeholders and other interested parties to attend the fair to put their innovations and products on display, to discuss and set a new paradigm to pace ceramics and their constituents development in Nigeria” he said.
According to him, Nigerians need to project what they have and should be prepared to sustain themselves always.
“What if we have issues with foreign countries, they don’t need to throw bombs or come here to fight, all they need to do is stop all the things that are being imported to Nigeria and that would be war because we import so much what we use on daily basis but if we are able to manufacture all these here, then you will know the importance of this country” he said.
He noted that the objectives of the fair is to support on going efforts of the government to diversify the nations economy through the provision of awareness that will lead to the establishment of ceramic manufacturing businesses, show participants how to utilize Nigeria’s solid minerals (non oil resources) endowments ceramics manufacturing businesses that would generate employment and create new wealth, create a platform to promote steady growth of ceramics manufacturing businesses and facilitate contacts between suppliers and buyers of ceramic products, create new paradigm that will help local industries to flourish and internationalize their ceramics manufacturing business and show the wealthy but untapped resources of the ceramic enterprise can turn around the economy of Nigeria.
The Director General of NACCIMA, Mr. John Isemede, said Nigeria as a nation, has to look inwards and develop the raw materials that are abundant in the country, adding that, the type of things imported into the country are not the type of things that should be imported into the country in this 21st century.
“What people are going to the far East to import, we have the raw materials here in Nigeria, why we are having problems in Nigeria is because the private sectors are not working with the universities and the government also are not working with the universities, we have all the raw materials here and that is why we are having this fair to showcase ceramic manufacturing. What this professor wants to do, is to give to Nigerians what will create jobs and help the economy grow”
