'Naira crash pushes raw material imports to N3tn' - NBS

The Foreign Trade Statistics data published by the National Bureau of Statistics revealed in a new report that the imports of raw materials into the country increased by 25 per cent to N3tn in 2023.

Cane sugar, lubricating oils, sheets for veneers and others are the raw materials that were mostly imported during this period.

On the other hand, Nigeria could only export raw materials worth N1.8tn between 2022 and 2023.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Muda Yusuf, stated that the increase in raw material imports is due to the depreciation of the naira.

He said, “I think it is because of the naira depreciation. If you were importing something that was $1m when the exchange rate was N450, now you are importing products worth $1m and the exchange rate is N1,500.

“That is three times already if you multiply it in naira. So, in dollar terms, the import may have even reduced. We have to consider that.”

The immediate past MAN President, Mansur Ahmed, added that excessive reliance on imported raw materials had significantly weakened the Nigerian manufacturing sector.

He noted, “Our manufacturing sector is weak because it is dependent on imported materials that we then process. We must therefore scale up or scale down. Our manufacturers have to go back and do the transformation.

“We in manufacturing need to focus on this issue. We need to build infrastructure. I was in a meeting where the Vice President inaugurated the National Council on Infrastructure.”

Mansur recommended a public-private partnership that aimed to encourage backward integration, import substitution and other measures that would curb excessive import of raw materials.