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Organised Private Sector (OPS) in the commercial city of Kano is expressing frustration over the continuing decline in Nigerian economy that is pushing more businesses out of operation in the recent time.
The frustration is in connection with the harsh operating environment, which is being compounded by naira depreciation against other major global currencies.
A development that is making it difficult for the operators to access raw materials as well as spare parts required to keeping most of the companies and businesses operating in the state afloat.
Confirming the frustrating situation under which the OPS is operating in the state, an economic expert, Magaji Bello, says players in the sector are being hit hard by the ongoing depreciating value of the naira.
Bello says increasing shortages of basic social infrastructure required by businesses to function properly is compounding the situation as regards the national currency.
“Looking at the fundamentals of the Nigerian economy as it is now, one can conclude that this is the most challenging moment for business operators in the country, not only in Kano State alone.
“Presently, apart from the poor state of infrastructure, which businesses have being crying about for a long time now, the most crippling thing is the value of the naira that keeps going down daily.
“One of the fundamental reasons why the members of the OPS, in particular, are finding it very difficult to operate now is because they depend almost totally on imported raw material and technology,” he explains.
Bello suggests that there is the need for the Federal Government to re-tool the macro-economic environment under which businesses are operating in order to prevent them from going out of operation.
It could be recalled that the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) Kano State chapter charged the Federal Government to put in place policies and interventions that would prevent the ongoing shedding of more jobs by businesses as well as worsening poverty ratio among residents of the commercial city.
The association said the economy of Kano, which before now was second biggest in the country, had continue to shrink as a result of hostile operating environment occasioned by failed government policies.
Commenting on the official position of the association on the performance of the nation’s economy in past one year, during his address at the meeting, Safiyanu Baba, who is the chairman of the association, said the manufacturing environment, in particular, had continued to degenerate due to a number of reasons.
Baba also said high cost of energy was affecting the competitiveness of the goods and services being manufactured locally, when compared with imported ones.
Other reasons he said included: “Smuggling of textile products that are substandard and sometimes counterfeit of local products and others trade malpractices, in addition to multiplicity of taxes by state and local government authorities.
“Frequent changes in government policies and improper implementation of entrenched polices, which in most cases, affect the manufacturing sector, and depilated infrastructure.”
In order to arrest the drift, Baba urged the federal, and Kano State governments to provide all necessary infrastructure and enabling environment for businesses to thrive.
“The responsibility of government is to provide the infrastructure and the enabling environment for industrial activities. The role of the private sector is to complement what the government does by creating employment.
“To achieve this goal, we are calling on government to urgently address the challenges militating against the growth of the manufacturing sector in Kano State,” he said.
Adeola Ajakaiye
