Mr. Paul Gbadebo, Group Managing Director, Flour Mills Nigeria Plc, has lamented that the political crises in the country have been hampering growth in every sector of the economy.
Speaking at the annual conference of the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers in Port-Harcourt, Gbadebo maintained that insecurity, restiveness and political inconsistencies had been retarding operations in businesses and industries to the detriment of the economy.
The Flour Mills boss, who spoke on ‘Domestic Manufacturing: Opportunities and Challenges’, stated that the operating landscape in the nation’s business environment was riddled with such challenges as dearth of basic infrastructure, poor macroeconomic management, over regulation and multiple taxation.
Gbadebo also listed the country’s dilapidated infrastructural base such as failed road network, inefficient railway system, frequent power outages and under-developed water-ways system as other critical challenges confronting industrial growth in Nigeria.
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He identified government’s policy inadequacy, inconsistency and reversals as major constraints to industrialisation in Nigeria, even as he stressed that over regulation, multiple taxes/levies, ports issues, poor financing initiatives and inadequate specialised funding windows also retard progress in the manufacturing sector.
Gbadebo, however, stressed that despite the prevailing challenges and constraints, the industrial potentials of Nigeria had not been in doubt, hence stakeholders must do everything possible to take advantage of the nation’s huge resources to transform the country.
He said for there to be growth, the government must intervene within the framework of public-private partnership (PPP), stressing those policies should be in tandem with the nation’s aspirations and should not work against businesses and industries.
According to him, to boost competitiveness, the manufacturing industry must embrace digitalisation, innovation, and skill development.
Gbadebo advocated for an increase in national income, higher standard of living, economic and social stability, improvement in balance of payments and foreign trade, stimulated progress in other sectors, increased employment opportunities and specialisation of labour, as well as large scope for technological progress.
