By Tony Obiechina, ABUJA
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Emefiele on Thursday met with service chiefs and heads of paramilitary agencies over the implementation of the Executive Order 3 issued by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The meeting,which was held at the headquarters of the CBN was also attended by Chief Executives of uniformed services.
The aim of the meeting was to revive the Nigerian textile industry through enforcement of Executive Order 003 on Support of Local Content in Procurement by Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government.
Speaking at the meeting, the governor said the apex bank has the full backing of the President to achieving its mandate of reviving the Cotton, Garment and Textile industry.
In order to achieve the current administration’s drive towards economic diversification and creating jobs for the teeming population with emphasis on agricultural revolution, Emefiele said the CTG sector has been identified as critical.
He said the priority placed on the sector was hinged on the conviction that it haa the capacity to transform Nigeria’s rural economy and revive the textile and garment industries by creating over two million jobs, improve internal revenue across three tiers of government, and reduce $4.0bn import bill incurred annually on textile and apparel.
He said the sector also has potential to safeguard and earn foreign exchange and ultimately accelerate industrial development by making Nigeria a global player in the textile and apparel sectors.
He said, "This event symbolizes our commitment to attain self-sufficiency in cotton production with a view to serving the Textile and Garment segments of the value chain with quality inputs as we target zero importation by the year 2020.
"I have been holding meetings with the CTG aector stakeholders toward reviving Nigeria’s textile sector.
"We analysed the huge potentials that exist in the sector, identified the challenges militating against the sector’s contribution to Nigeria’s growth and development and presented quick wins for reviving the sector.
" Crucial to this resolve is the call for patriotism and the need to support local manufacturers of textile through patronage by MDAs as entrenched in Executive Order 003.
"Mr President has directed full compliance with this Order as it will help in addressing the pressure on our foreign reserves through demands for forex for the importation of textile and clothing materials."
Emefiele said based on the CBN's interactions with stakeholders, it was revealed that MDAs have not made any significant order for uniforms or clothing materials from Nigerian textile manufacturers and garment companies.
The Governor said governments’ efforts at resuscitating the textile industry would not be actualized if they are not supported through local patronage among other incentives.
"We have put in place necessary mechanisms to ensure use of high yielding varieties that will produce top quality fabrics and those that can compete in the international market.
"We have also observed that our textile factories are carrying huge quantities of unsold stock while our garment factories are idle due to lack of local patronage. We are optimistic that with your support, this trend can be reversed.
"We have the mandate of Mr President to ensure that all uniformed services and theatre wears in hospitals and medical facilities be sourced locally from the Nigerian CTG sector", he added.
To ensure the success of the Presidential Order, he said the Bureau of Public Procurement has been notified to enforce compliance among MDAs.
"Our model in achieving this presidential directive is to facilitate long term contracts (five years or more) with our textile and garment factories to produce uniforms for our armed forces and uniform services using local fabrics and textile materials.
"We are not naive of the fact that the nature of your jobs will warrant special quality and security around the production of your wares.
"My team will work with your nominees toward ensuring requisite quality and security associated with your uniforms.
"Your nominees will also join our team to inspect the various textiles and garment factories to ensure their readiness to be engaged on long term contracts to forestall breaches.
"We shall work out payment terms that fit budget releases for uniforms for various organisations," he stated.
The Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Buratai commended the apex bank governor for the steps being taken to revive the CTG sector.
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