FG, manufacturers raise $380m for industrial devt

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The Federal Government and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria have mobilised $380m under the Industrial Revolution Work Group to drive Nigeria’s industrial agenda from policy to execution.

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Deliberations at the IRWG Technical Session 2.0, themed ‘From Policy to Production: Financing Nigeria’s Industrial Take-off,’ were focused on a government-industry partnership to execute Nigeria’s industrial policy. It was held in Lagos on Thursday and hosted by the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.

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The IRWG, co-chaired by Minister of State for Industry, Sen. John Enoh and President of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Francis Meshioye, proposed to float a N350bn Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund, train 400 young Nigerians in mechatronics, and certify 131 companies and 220 products for access under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

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Minister Enoh said Nigeria now has a comprehensive, structured industrial policy for the first time in decades, and that the government has already delivered its first 90-day implementation report under the plan.

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“We now have a structured plan; it’s comprehensive, and it is presently being executed,” Enoh said, outlining how the IRWG had partitioned Nigeria’s industrial constraints into five thematic areas covering power, energy, affordable long-term finance, skills and bureaucratic bottlenecks.

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He disclosed that the government would break ground next week on an initiative to supply power to a newly identified industrial cluster in Madalla, Niger State, near Abuja.

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“I am hoping by next week, I am going to do groundbreaking in terms of our initiative to be able to provide power to that cluster and enable the industries and manufacturing businesses that are there to operate,” Enoh said.

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He said Welbeck Electricity had committed to achieving power supply to the cluster by December. “In terms of what we do on power and energy, after the groundbreaking next week, we have a commitment by Welbeck Electricity that by December, power would be achieved in terms of what we want to do,” Enoh said.

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On timelines, Enoh pointed to the government’s 90-day progress reporting cycle as the yardstick for tracking implementation.

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“Every 90 days, we’re reporting progress. So if you follow our 90-day progress report, you’ll be able to measure the kinds of things that we’re doing in pursuit of the implementation of that policy,” he said.

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Speaking, Director-General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, said the IRWG, inaugurated last year as an inter-ministerial and private sector-driven initiative, had already produced the Nigerian Industrial Policy as one of its earliest outcomes, and that the policy has since secured presidential endorsement.

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Ajayi-Kadir said members of the group’s thematic sub-groups renewed their commitment to the process at the session, but stressed that industry had not fared well despite progress recorded at the technical level.

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“There is need for a deepening of our resolve at this stage, and to re-examine those issues that we raised before that have not been fully ventilated,” Ajayi-Kadir said.

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He called for the recapitalisation of the BOI, describing it as the most credible platform for channelling credit to manufacturers, and said any facility priced above single digits effectively benefits banks rather than industry.

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“If you give a manufacturer any facility that is above single digit, it’s actually working for the banks,” Ajayi-Kadir said.

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He also demanded the removal of what he called regulated tariff-running, and called for regulatory agencies to support businesses rather than serve as revenue-generation platforms.

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“We should have agencies that are poised to support in business, and not becoming a drain or a revenue generation platform,” Ajayi-Kadir said.

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An executive summary of the session showed that Nigeria’s manufacturing sector grew by 3.24 per cent in the second quarter of 2026, even as its share of real Gross Domestic Product declined to 7.72 per cent, while the textiles, apparel and footwear sub-sector contracted by 1.23 per cent.

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The session produced a consolidated 30/60/90-Day Implementation Matrix spanning five pillars: energy and infrastructure, finance and incentives, made-in-Nigeria market integrity, regulatory reform, and skills and innovation.

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A second Ministerial Roundtable on affordable long-term finance holds Friday in Lagos, and is expected to support the development of a National Industrial Compact setting out financial instruments, responsible institutions and a fresh 30/60/90-day implementation framework.

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Issues around cheaper electricity for industrial clusters, the Bank of Industry’s recapitalisation and single-digit interest rates for manufacturers were also discussed.

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