By Rotimi Ojomoyela

Ado-Ekiti–The National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) has said that Nigerian manufacturers have the capacity to produce quality goods.

The agency also said there is need for the citizenry to patronize locally made products and depend less on imported goods.

A deputy director, (Engineering) NASENI, Engineer Joseph Oladimeji Alasoluyi stated these in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital during the agency’s strategic focus group on made-in-Nigeria products with the theme: “Made In Nigeria for Everyone”.

Alasoluyi who explained that part of NASENI mandates is to promote local technology said federal government is making efforts to make the Nigeria to be more of producing nation than a consuming nation.

He said, “It is to make people to be aware of the fact that Nigerians have the capacity to make made in Nigeria goods. Part of our campaign is local technology. No nation can strive without technology. We are out to make people aware that there is the need for us to patronize made in Nigeria goods.

“Nigerians have the capacity, the expertise and the resources, so why are we not patronizing made in Nigeria products? If Nigeria must take its rightful place in global technology, it begins with you and I.

“The present administration under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu is ensuring that Nigerians don’t depend much on imported goods. We know Nigeria as a consuming nation but that mindset needs to be changed. We want to be a producing or manufacturing nation and be exporting our goods. And how can we do that? Needs have been put in place by NASENI in the areas of collaboration, creation and commercialization. There is need to rob minds with the stakeholders as government cannot do it alone.

“There have been fora where entrepreneurs are invited for exhibition to know things being produced . We are open for collaboration with the SMEs. We train them and build their capacity in all our twelve centers which spread across Nigeria.

“Primarily, we are training the SMEs and the processes, the products are seeded out to them so that they can mass produce in an environment that is thriving”.

He said the agency was established basically to promote and develop science, technology and engineering infrastructure in the country as well as to address various changes and needs in Nigeria scientific and technological development.

“The mandate of NASENI centers on research, development, manufacturing and capacity building, job creation among others. To fulfil these mandates, we have 12 centres of institutes strategically located across the country with different mandates in the areas of electronics, engineering materials and designs, manufacturing, power and scientific equipment and solid minerals and more institutes are still coming up.

“The agency is made to be of great relevant to the SMEs , the product developed is to assist the SMEs to be empowered and to contribute to the nation’s technological and economic development”.

During the panel session,

Prof. Sunday Adedini of Federal University, Oye Ekiti, Senior Special Assistant to Ekiti Governor, Mr Moses Ademiloye, an entrepreneur Mrs Modupe Akosile among others spoke about factors responsible for non-acceptance of locally made goods to Nigerians and how government and private bodies could be of assistance to the SMEs.

Mrs Akosile who was of the view that made in Nigeria products are being accepted said there is the need to scale it up through more awareness campaigns.

“It will be nice if the government and private organizations can create more awareness for the people to know more about made in Nigeria goods. Not just to know about it but to also patronize them to be able to use them”.

On the government support for entrepreneur, she said, “I will like the government to assist by providing grants for them not loan. This will encourage many who want to go into entrepreneurship but does not have the funds to start to do it. This will go a long way in reducing unemployment in our country”.

In his contribution, Professor Adedini said, “leadership must coordinate the processes well, training of the SMEs must be prioritise, agencies synergy, government protection of local industries and consumers”.

For Ademiloye Nigerians should get quality for what they paid for and get value for their money.

“Also, there should be availability of the products . It is discovered that the quantity of goods produced in Nigeria, most of the time don’t meet up with the volume of what Nigerians want. Most Nigerians are not aware of made in Nigeria goods and products compare to the foreign ones”.