The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria has called on the Federal Government to turn the Nigeria First Policy into law to boost the manufacturing sector.
MAN Director-General Segun Ajayi-Kadir, in his keynote address on Thursday at the 2025 BusinessDay Manufacturing Conference held in Lagos, said that gazetting the procurement policy would ensure it is implemented across all arms of government and the private sector.
‘Nigeria First’ is a procurement policy mandating Federal Government ministries, departments and agencies to prioritise locally made products in their budgetary allocations.
Ajayi-Kadir stated that manufacturing, which is burdened by high interest rates, can benefit from the policy when it is enforceable as law.
He recommended: “Make the Nigeria First Policy a binding law, and punitive measures should be put in place for violators. This is critical to give the policy legal standing, ensuring transparency, public awareness, and enforceability across government institutions and the private sector.”
Ajayi-Kadir warned that the Nigeria First policy risks going the way of past executive orders 003 and 005 that failed to make a tangible impact due to the absence of a formal legal framework.
