Comfort Isaac
The Director general of the Nigerian Automotive Design and Development Council Mr. Oluwemimo Osanipin said Nigeria will soon begin the production of plastic automotive components.
Osanipin who disclosed this during stakeholders engagement in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital on Thursday said the council had identified those components Nigeria has comparative advantage at a lower cost. He said such components include, plastic parts from by-product of petroleum.
The DG said his organization is ready to promote the “Nigeria First Policy” of the federal government adding that the policy was what his council was agitating for over the years.
“We have been calling for this policy , this means that we are going to patronise made-in-Nigeria goods especially automotive because it is one of the areas that government spends a lot of money.
“So it is going to have an impact on what we are doing now and grow the automotive sector. We have identified those components that we can do with comparative advantage at a lower cost like plastic parts because some of the material will come from by-product of petroleum.
“A lot of things can be produced in Nigeria, we have identified them and we are working with major assemblers and major vehicle manufacturers” Osanipin said
He also disclosed that 12 universities in Nigeria have been selected to design and produce electric shuttle buses that would be used in the institutions.
He said two universities each from the six geopolitical zones made up the team and the parts would be sourced locally.
He urged stakeholders in the industry to embrace regulation of the sector to ensure safety and environmental soundness of vehicles circulating in the country.
In his remarks, the national president of Automotive Dealers Of Nigeria Engr Ajibola Adedoyin listed the gains of the regulatory framework to include security , increased revenue etc.
He tasked the government on fine tuning the policy to promote affordability and accessibility.
