The Vice President, Dr. Jonathan Goodluck has described Peugeot Automobile Nigeria Ltd, PAN, as a national treasure and urged Nigerians and Nigerian based companies to patronise the brand.

The vice president while speaking at the official launch of the Peugeot 307 Sedan produced at the Kaduna assembly plant said, “the federal government, is not unmindful of its role and in line with its recent clarion call to buy and support made in Nigeria goods and services hereby urges Nigerians and Nigerian based companies to patronise PAN products.

“As a stakeholder in the company, we are in support of the resourceful direction being charted by the management of PAN to reposition the company,” he said.

The vice president who took a ride in the first 307 Sedan that rolled out from the plant, after inspecting the body shop, paint shop and assembly shop and quality control commended PAN management for sustaining production even in the face of challenges that have beset the automobile industry globally.

“As we salute the evident resilience at PAN, it is imperative to say that the Federal Government is aware of the key issues in the manufacturing sector and is adopting effective measures for the industry to regain grounds on massive scale,” he said.

He explained that the Federal Government plan to re-stimulate the manufacturing and transport industry was anchored on the provision of key infrastructure such as power, railway, roads and water as well as creating a positive environment for investment to thrive.

To this end, he said that 6,000 megawatts of electricity which the government set out to achieve in the immediate will benefit manufacturers and reduce their operation costs. Also, he said s top priority, the federal government is determined to prompt the transport sector to respond to the need of the industry.

In his welcome address, the Managing Director, Peugeot Automobile Nigeria Ltd, PAN, Dr.Haroun Aliyu noted that words could not express their joy at having the vice president kick-starting the industrial launch of the Peugeot 307 Sedan assembled in Nigeria.

The managing director who could not hide his excitement disclosed that the 307 Sedan was the first product initiated and executed under a Nigerian management, a testimony to the success of privatisation.

“Three y ears after, we are proud to report that we have relentlessly pursued the fundamental objective of sustaining car production against a myriad of internal and external challenges. The Peugeot boss however pointed out that an average of 22 units of the 307 Sedan will be produced daily at the Kaduna plant, bringing the total production in a year to 7,000 units.

He regretted that some years back PAN was producing average of 245 cars daily on three shifts with nearly 5,000 active staff and over 25,000 indirect staff while local content on the cars stood at about 37 per cent giving rise to scores of entrepreneurships in automotive components across the nation. This period in the early 80’s according to him was unarguably a golden moment for the company and indeed the industrial community.

Despite the downturn, the managing director stated that they have an elaborate plan to gradually return to the production peak though the establishment of an industrial cluster of local content producers within their premises, sharing common infrastructures, active discussions with relevant agencies of government on formulations of favourable policies that will guarantee patronage for both the components and the vehicles, efficient production, thus facilitating the achievement of a national car in Nigeria.

He therefore called on all levels, private sector operators and indeed individuals to patronise Peugeot products.