3 Years Of Tinubu: Manufacturers Yet To See Policies Translate Into Industrial Growth — MAN

Over the past three years, President Bola Tinubu’s administration has rolled out an ambitious package of economic and industrial reforms designed to reposition Nigeria’s manufacturing sector, attract investment, deepen local value addition and stimulate production-led growth.

From intervention funds and industrial roadmaps to fiscal reforms, local content policies and foreign exchange restructuring, the administration has introduced several initiatives aimed at strengthening the country’s industrial base.

However, while manufacturers acknowledge the intent and potential of many of these policies, they argue that tangible improvements in industrial performance have yet to materialise.

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) says the challenge is no longer the absence of policy frameworks but the inability of those policies to translate into lower production costs, improved competitiveness and measurable industrial growth.

Director General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, described the past three years as a period of difficult but consequential economic transition, noting that the administration had demonstrated courage in addressing long-standing structural distortions within the economy.

According to him, however, the burden of the reforms has fallen heavily on manufacturers.

Among the administration’s flagship interventions is the N200 billion Presidential Intervention Fund introduced to support manufacturers and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

The fund was structured into three components comprising a N75 billion Manufacturing Sector Fund, N75 billion MSME Loan Scheme and N50 billion Nano Business Support Scheme.

The initiative was conceived as a stimulus package to ease access to affordable financing and support productive enterprises struggling under rising operating costs.

While manufacturers welcomed the intervention, MAN maintains that the broader industrial environment remains challenging, with many firms still grappling with high energy costs, exchange rate pressures and expensive credit, limiting the overall impact of intervention financing.

The administration also unveiled the Nigeria Industrial Policy (NIP) 2025, a comprehensive 10-year framework intended to transform the country’s industrial landscape.

The policy targets raising manufacturing’s contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to between 20 and 25 per cent by 2030, while proposing the recapitalisation of the Bank of Industry (BoI) to N3 trillion to expand industrial financing.

MAN views the policy as one of the most significant industrial initiatives introduced by the administration.

However, he insists that the policy’s success will depend entirely on implementation and the government’s ability to create a supportive operating environment for manufacturers.

Another major initiative is the ‘Nigeria First’ policy, which directs Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to prioritise locally manufactured goods and services in public procurement.

The policy seeks to stimulate domestic production, reduce dependence on imports and create market opportunities for indigenous industries.

MAN has strongly welcomed the initiative, describing it as potentially transformative for local manufacturers.

According to the association, effective implementation across all government institutions could significantly expand demand for Nigerian-made products, encourage new investments and deepen domestic value chains.

“The renewed emphasis on local content procurement through the Nigeria First framework represents an important step toward strengthening domestic industrial capacity,” MAN DG said.

Nevertheless, he cautioned that the policy must be consistently enforced to avoid becoming another well-intentioned initiative with limited practical impact.

One of the most consequential economic reforms undertaken by the administration was the unification of foreign exchange (FX) windows and the liberalisation of the exchange rate regime.

The reforms were designed to improve transparency, eliminate market distortions and attract foreign investment.

While acknowledging these objectives, MAN said the immediate impact on manufacturers has been severe, noting that the sharp depreciation of the naira significantly increased the cost of imported machinery, raw materials and industrial inputs.

According to MAN, many manufacturers were forced to absorb substantial cost increases, resulting in higher product prices, reduced profit margins and delayed expansion plans.

The proposed legislation requiring a minimum of 30 per cent local value addition before selected agricultural commodities and solid minerals can be exported has received strong support from manufacturers.