The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has urged government institutions to patronise locally made goods and services. The President of MAN, Dr Frank Jacobs, made the call at a “Public Private Dialogue on `Made-in-Nigeria’’ organised by the association in Abuja.
Jacobs stated that government’s patronage of locally made products was critical to the development of the country’s manufacturing sector and by extension the nation’s economy. He stressed the need for public procurement to be seen as a tool for national economic development and not just as a function.
“It is without doubt that the government, through its projected budgetary expenditures, is the largest institutional spender in Nigeria. It is also true that the private sector depends, to a large extent, on government budgetary expenditures. For instance, productive sector players such as manufacturers expect significant purchases of their products by government establishments for execution of their numerous projects. The pertinent question at this juncture is whether Nigerian government procurement tilts towards local products, and if not, how would fiscal policy, through government budgetary
expenditures, translate to economic growth? Unfortunately, the implication of the procurement of foreign products by government establishments simply means that we are using our meagre resources to grow other economies and create jobs in foreign countries while our citizens are impoverished.’’
Jacobs noted that the high level of manufacturing activities in emerging economies like Malaysia, Singapore and South Africa stemmed from deliberate procurement policies implemented by their government for the manufacturing sector.
“There should be a paradigm shift from the current tilted orientation to ensuring that our procurement actions are in the best interest of the country. We need to understand that public procurement is not just a function but a fiscal policy tool which is used for the development of the industrial and manufacturing sector, and by extension, the entire economy. Government should at all times give preference to Nigerian products with a price benchmark.
