Director, Nigeria Automotive Manufacturers Association , Benneth Ejindu ; National Coordinator, Automotive Local Component Manufacturers Association of Nigeria , Ilekuba Anselm, and former Director of Policy and Planning at the National Automotive Design and Development Council , Luqman Mamudu, at the Nigeria Auto Industry Summit, in Lagos, recently.
Presenting a paper titled: ‘Essential Keys for Repositioning the Automotive Industry as a Driving Force for Sustainable Economic Growth in Nigeria,’ Board Member of the Nigerian Automotive Manufacturers Association , Benneth Ejindu, said Nigeria could revive tyre, battery, and glass manufacturing as a precursor to revamping local auto manufacturing.
He said Nigeria needs to sign the NAIDP into law, develop and implement an automotive raw material and component manufacturing masterplan and incentivise complete knocked down assembly through contract manufacturing. “Lack of access to long-term, low-interest funds, especially consumer finance, low level of investment and lack of focus on improving competitiveness to bring down operating costs are some of the challenges in the industry,” he said.
A former adviser to the government on automotive policy advised that all imported used vehicles including salvage must be accompanied by certificates of integrity from originating countries. “To bring back commercial vehicle manufacturers on board, the government must urgently address the zero differential between the import of fully built SKD for commercial vehicles and fully built commercial vehicles, which presently stands at 10 per cent. This was smuggled into the NAIDP programme without consultation with the industry,” Mamudu said. He called on the government to create an N100 billion intervention fund to drive affordable vehicle acquisition loans.