The 16th Meeting of the National Council on Industry, Trade and Investment concluded in Lagos with a powerful mandate: Nigeria must “produce what it consumes” to survive the current global economic shift. Hosted by the Lagos State Government, the council gathered top policymakers to move beyond policy declarations and into the “relentless implementation” of strategies that support local manufacturing and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
Under the theme “Accelerating Diversification to Rebuild Prosperity by Leveraging Industry, Trade and Investment for Shared Prosperity,” leaders emphasized that diversification is no longer just a policy goal—it is an imperative for national survival.
The Call for Local Consumption
Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Folasade Ambrose-Medebem, highlighted the vulnerability created by over-reliance on oil. She argued that the path to future economic relevance lies in:
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Strategic Investment: Directing capital toward the production of local goods.
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Psychological Shift: Encouraging a “Nigerian First” mindset in consumer behavior to reduce the heavy drainage of foreign exchange on imports.
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Internal Resilience: Building an economy that can withstand external global shocks by strengthening domestic supply chains.
Removing Bottlenecks for SMEs
Federal Permanent Secretary Nura Abba Rimi noted that manufacturing must remain the “backbone of industrialization.” To achieve this, the Federal Ministry is focusing on:
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Industrial Clusters: Strengthening sector-specific clusters to improve shared infrastructure and reduce production costs.
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Digital Ease of Doing Business: Removing manual documentation hurdles to facilitate faster trade and export.
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Access to Finance: Creating a more inclusive financial system that specifically caters to the unique capital needs of SMEs.
Key Takeaways from the Council
Economist and keynote speaker Abiodun Adesire provided a stark reminder during the session: “No country survives economically by relying on imported goods.” The council’s resolutions focused on turning Nigeria into a manufacturing hub rather than just a massive consumer market.
The meeting underscored that the “Shared Prosperity” agenda depends on a collaborative effort between the federal and state governments to create an environment where local industries can flourish and lead the charge in intra-African trade.
