The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) have expressed concern over the declining contribution of Nigeria’s manufacturing sector to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the country’s gradual shift from production to consumption.
The two bodies made these remarks on Tuesday in Lagos during the opening of the 3-day Made-in-Nigeria Exhibition (MiNE) themed “Nigeria First: Prioritising Patronage of Made-in-Nigeria,” held as part of activities marking MAN’s 53rd Annual General Meeting (AGM).
In his welcome address, MAN President, Mr. Francis Meshioye, lamented the continued contraction of the country’s manufacturing base, describing it as a major threat to economic sustainability. He noted that the “Nigeria First” policy, which promotes the patronage of locally made products, was essential for national economic survival and long-term transformation.
Citing recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Meshioye revealed that the industry’s share of GDP fell from 27.65 per cent in 2010 to 21.08 per cent in 2019, while the manufacturing sector recorded a negative average growth rate of –0.76 per cent between 2019 and 2024. He warned that the economy’s tilt from production to consumption and services was “unsustainable.”
“To build a resilient and forward-looking economy, Nigeria must re-industrialise, and this process should begin with deliberate support for local manufacturers,” Meshioye said. He added that the “Nigeria First” agenda was not about isolationism but about “opening the right doors to Nigerian-made solutions, jobs, and ingenuity.”
He also called for legislation to institutionalise the policy, establish a compliance framework, and ensure enforcement with penalties for non-compliance. Meshioye proposed the creation of an independent agency to monitor patronage levels and publicly disclose performance across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
“Let it be known which institutions are genuinely driving local empowerment and those that are not,” he said, stressing the need for corporate organisations, multinationals, and large procurement bodies to source materials and inputs locally, as many are already produced to global standards.
Also speaking, the UNIDO Representative in Nigeria, Amb. Philbert Abaka Johnson, said President Bola Tinubu’s “Nigeria First” policy provides a clear pathway to strengthen domestic patronage of local products and services.
He urged that the policy should go beyond rhetoric and be pursued as a “strategic economic proposition” requiring coordinated action across all levels of society. According to him, “‘Nigeria First’ is not about isolation but intelligent integration — ensuring that Nigerian producers can compete, scale, and contribute meaningfully to development.”
Johnson emphasised that the success of the initiative depended on improvements in infrastructure, energy reliability, access to finance, skills development, and trade facilitation. He added that transparent monitoring and quality assurance would enhance trust in Nigerian products locally and globally.
“When Nigerian products are trusted, they will be patronised not just at home, but internationally,” he concluded.
