MAN DG laments P&G exit, warns of more closures in manufacturing sector

By Abubakar Yunusa

The Director General of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Segun Ajayi-Kadir, has expressed his sadness over the exit of Procter & Gamble, a multinational consumer goods manufacturer, from Nigeria.
He warned that more manufacturers may follow suit unless the government addresses the challenges facing the sector.
Ajayi-Kadir made these remarks on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Monday, where he discussed the implications of P&G’s decision to shut down its production lines in Nigeria and export its products into the country instead.
He said that P&G’s exit was not totally unexpected, given the difficult operating environment for manufacturers in Nigeria.
“Obviously, we received it (P&G exit) with sadness but it is not totally unexpected and more may happen because there is no doubt that we operate in an environment that is challenged,” he said.
He explained that manufacturing in any economy requires a strategic choice by the government, which has to decide whether it wants to industrialise the country or not.
According to him, the government has to remove the binding constraints that limit the performance of the sector, such as inadequate infrastructure, high cost of energy, multiple taxation, policy inconsistency, and insecurity.
“Manufacturing in any economy is a strategic choice, the government has to make up its mind whether it wants its country to be an industrialised one. Once that decision is taken, you have to do all that is needed to remove the binding constraints that limits the performance of that sector, Nigeria has not done so and that is why you can see there are closures,” he said.
He added that P&G’s exit was not an isolated case, as several other manufacturers have closed down or left the country quietly for similar reasons.
He cited the example of GlaxoSmithKline, another multinational consumer goods manufacturer, which also announced its decision to stop local production and import its products into Nigeria a few months ago.
“I think it is news because it is Procter and Gamble, it is news because it is GlaxoSmithKline, it is news because they have been in the country for a very long time, but they are several others that have died quietly and for reasons that are clearly avoidable,” he said.