From Femi Oyelola Kaduna
The National Union of Textile, Garment & Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN), has commended President Muhamadu Buhari efforts to revive the textile industry and make it productive again.
The General Secretary of the Union, Comrade Issa Aremu stated this in a statement to felicitate with the president on his 75 years birthday and made available to the media in kaduna yesterday.
The statement added that the singular order mandating government agencies to spend more of their budgets on locally produced goods would help in the recovery of the textile and garment industries
The textile workers, however, said the challenge is to ensure that the agencies make the executive orders a reality in patronizing locally produced textiles.
The Union advised Police and Customs department to stop buying officers uniforms from Bangladesh and China, when the surviving textile factories can produce at home.
“The point cannot be overstated; Nigeria currently spends over US$4 billion annually importing textiles and readymade clothing when it has the potential to produce for the local market and even export to the ECOWAS market of over 175 million people, as well as to the developed world (e.g. the United States under AGOA and EU GSP scheme which Kenya, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Madagascar and a number of African countries are already exploiting,” the union noted.
Never miss a moment! Get the stories shaping Nigeria, delivered straight to your phone. Follow Peoplesdaily Newspaper on WhatsApp for breaking news, exclusive reports, and the headlines everyone will be talking about, before anyone else.
