President Bola Tinubu recently approved a ban on Ministries, Departments, and Agencies in the country from purchasing foreign goods and services available in Nigeria without a waiver from the Bureau of Public Procurement. The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, announced this after the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting in Abuja.
He said the Nigeria First Policy places our country at the centre of public procurement and business activity, with a strong focus on empowering local industries.
It is designed to foster a new business culture that is bold, confident, and uniquely Nigerian. The new policy, dubbed: “Renewed Hope Nigeria First Policy,” aims at strengthening the domestic economy by promoting local content, and reducing Nigeria’s dependence on imports.
The Minister said that the new policy mirrored the United States of America’s “America First Policy. Idris warned that all MDAs must review and resubmit their procurement plans in line with the new policy, adding that breaches would attract disciplinary action and possible cancellation of future procurement processes.
He cited Nigeria’s continued importation of sugar despite having a functioning Sugar Council and several domestic producers as a prime example of inefficiency the policy seeks to eliminate. He said from now on, government money must now work for the Nigerian people, and that contractors will no longer be allowed to act as mere intermediaries importing foreign goods while Nigerian factories remain underutilised.
This Nigeria First policy is the latest of the many economic reforms under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, aimed at boosting the domestic economy. Under this policy, the Bureau of Public Procurement has been directed to maintain an updated register of verified and qualified Nigerian manufacturers and service providers, and a compliance framework is to be developed to ensure that the local content requirements are adhered to.
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A critical aspect of the policy is the emphasis on technology transfer and skill development. Any contract involving foreign procurement will henceforth Include skill development programmes and local production partnerships.
This policy deserves the support of all Nigerians who mean well for their country. Nations which depend on imports for imports hardly record economic progress. Those who complain of a weakened naira must embrace this Nigeria First Policy. You Must Buy Naija to grow the naira. This means your preference should be for Nigeria’s goods and services. When you buy made in Nigeria goods, you are helping to strengthen our national currency in addition to sustaining local jobs and growing the economy. You sustain jobs abroad when you buy foreign-made goods.
The Nigeria First policy is a clarion call for economic nationalism. When you purchase imported items, you are helping to deplete scarce foreign exchange, and by extension putting a severe strain on the naira, which eventually leads to its devaluation.
The policy as announced by the Federal Government is targeted at the MDAs at the federal level only. States and local governments should embrace this patriotic policy. The private sector should also voluntarily key into this laudable policy because a robust local economy benefits local industries. We must encourage local manufacturers and service providers in order to create jobs for our teeming youth.
The government on its part has to provide the enabling environment for businesses to thrive by devising policies to enable local manufacturers and service providers to expand production and s services to meet local demands.
Lastly, the National Orientation Agency should embark on the reorientation of Nigerians to do away with their age long inferiority complex which makes them prefer foreign goods and services even when they are not necessarily superior to the domestic alternatives.
Nigerian oil marketers spend millions of dollars monthly to import refined petroleum products. The government has to stop this once it is ascertained that domestic refiners now have the capacity to meet the demands of Nigerians.
. Osikhekha is a Public Affairs Analyst based in Lagos.
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