President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday, July 9, pledged the committment of his administration to implement essential reforms to protect Nigerian manufacturers against unfair competition from foreign counterparts.
The President made the pledge during a meeting with the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Abdulkadir Musa, and senior officials of relevant agencies at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, Buhari said with his focus on job creation, the government was ready to do whatever it considers necessary to boost domestic manufacturing and industrialisation.
He said: “With high interest rates and entrepreneurs needing trillions of Naira to buy machinery, we are virtually back at Ground Zero as far as industrial development is concerned.
“So, we will shun all anti-development policies, and make the climate more suitable for entrepreneurs. We will create the environment for them to thrive. Generating employment was one of our key campaign promises and we will keep that promise".
“We will no longer allow our markets to be flooded with things we can produce ourselves. We must believe in our system. Whenever you need my intervention at anytime, please come to me, “ he added