THE age-old plan to revive the country’s ailing textile industry may soon be back on track with a lifeline of N51 billion earmarked for it by the Federal Government. We welcome the development, provided the fund will not go the way of previous intervention funds that promised much but achieved little. Two years ago, a report by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment showed that over 145 Cotton, Textile and Garment (CTG) mills across the country collapsed in the last few years. 

But, the minister of state in the ministry, Aisha Abubakar, says government voted N51 billion in the 2017 budget to kick-start the revival of the ailing textile mills. She assured that the amount is part of a string of deliberate measures by the present administration to diversify the economy, create jobs and increase the patronage of made-in-Nigeria apparels.                                    

Speaking at a recent workshop organised by the Bank of Industry (BoI) in Abuja, the minister confirmed that between 1980 and 2016, no fewer than 145 textile industries shut down due to harsh economic conditions. The sub-sector, she pointed out, used to be the second largest revenue earner for the country.                      

In the golden era of the textile industry between 1985 and 1991, the annual growth of the sector was 67 percent. It provided over 350,000 jobs. Statistics also show that the industry once provided 25 percent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 20 percent of corporate taxation revenue. 

Not any longer. Today, there are less than 30 functional cotton, textile and garment mills in the country. Meanwhile,  the current annual global output of textile firms is estimated at over $400 billion, with half of that amount from China.

It is, however, important to ask how far N51bn go in reviving Nigeria’s ailing textile mills. Government has admitted that this may not be enough, but has affirmed its determination to sustain efforts geared at giving a new impetus to the sub-sector.                                          

Any serious effort in this direction must tackle the myriad problems facing the industry. These include instability in the power sector, high cost of production, competing textile imports from Asian countries and uncontrolled smuggling and dumping of substandard fabrics in the country. Over the years, very little has been done to address these problems.                                  

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It is sad that in spite of the importance of the textile industry to the economic recovery of the country, especially on account of its revenue and job creation abilities, little has been done to maximize its potentials. Government has estimated that it can create three million jobs in the sub-sector. It should do whatever is necessary to achieve this.

However, considering the amount of money that has been committed to the resuscitation of the industry in recent years without any appreciable results, we urge government to investigate how the N100bn Textile Intervention Fund of 2010 was spent.                                                      

Alhough the immediate past administration claimed it saved 8,070 jobs and created about 5000 new ones through the disbursement of the N100bn fund, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) had strongly disputed that claim. On the contrary, MAN says that only 38 Cotton, Textile and Garment firms benefited from the fund, while capacity utilisation in the textile sub-sector remains abysmally low.                                          

Considering the controversies that dogged the previous funds, government must demonstrate transparency in the disbursement of this N51bn whenever it is released. Beyond the intervention funds, we believe that the textile industry needs a comprehensive policy framework that will address all the constraints hindering its progress. This has become even more crucial now that the economy needs a lift through diversification from oil.                                                                 

Making the fund accessible to operators at a reasonable interest rate will be a step in the right direction. It will be recalled that in 2015, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) raised a glimmer of hope for textile industry operators when it floated a N300bn Real Sector Support Facility with nine percent interest rate. But, potential borrowers considered the rate too high. We call for a downward review of this rate.                 

Overall, while adequate funding is necessary to revive this sub-sector, it must come with the provision of requisite infrastructure. There should be stable power supply, modern equipment, good road network, scaling up of the fight against smuggling, foreign exchange supply and increased patronage of made-in-Nigeria fabrics. In fact, there must be sincerity of purpose in the release of funds for the revival of the textile manufacturing industry so that the objectives of diversifying the economy, getting the industries back on their feet and creating jobs can be achieved.