By Franklin Alli
JOBS creation in the manufacturing sector of the economy has been on the decline massively for two consecutive years (2015 – January 2017).

Operators are blaming the job contractions on increasing hostile operating environment bedeviling the sector. Data obtained from the Statistics Department of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), showed that jobs in the sector had been declining for 23 consecutive months.

Beverage and tobacco sector

Analysis of Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for January 2017, released by CBN, revealed that of the sixteen sub-sectors, twelve recorded jobs declines during the period under review.

The data further showed that the cement industry is leading the pack with -17.0 per cent jobs drop as employment fell from 57.6 per cent to 40.4 per cent.

Also,  jobs in the Food, beverage and tobacco sector  which stood at 54.9 dropped to 47.4 or -7.5 per cent;  also, employment in Nonmetallic mineral products manufacturers, nosedived from an index point of 49.1 to 42.9; representing -6.2 per cent.

Likewise, jobs in the Paper products sector declined by -5 percent from 50.0 to 45. 0.  Printing and related products also recorded drops in employment by -1.9 per cent, from 43.5 to 41.6; employment also contracted in the Textile, apparel, leather and footwear sector by -4.2 percent, from 53.8 to 49.6.

“The Manufacturing PMI stood at 48.2 index points in January 2017, indicating a decline in the manufacturing sector during the review period. The index averaged 45.2 in the last twelve months, and had grown in December 2016 after recording declines for eleven consecutive months,” said CBN.

Data from MAN, also showed that the aggregate manufacturing jobs created in 2014 and 2015 was 20, 535 jobs as against 53, 340 jobs created in the sector in 2013 alone.