By SALISU SANI-IDRIS

President Bola Tinubu, on Tuesday, unveiled Nigeria’s Industrial Policy 2025 with a charge to relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government to ensure speedy implementation.

Tinubu, represented by Vice-President Kashim Shettima inaugurated the policy at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre, Abuja.

The president explained that the policy was a roadmap for re-engineering Nigeria’s industrial base.

Tinubu added that the document would unlock value across sectors, and place production, competitiveness, and jobs at the centre of the nation’s economic strategy.

He regretted that for too long, Nigeria had grappled “with fragmented value chains, high production costs, infrastructure gaps, policy inconsistency, and insufficient coordination between government and industry.

“We have realised that industrialisation is not a wish you think about; it is an action you perform.

“More than that, we must remind ourselves that this task demands coherence across energy, trade, infrastructure, finance, skills, and innovation.

“It requires partnership between government and the private sector.”

Tinubu insisted on the timely implementation and execution of the policy, noting that when his administration came on board in 2023, it did so with a promise to redefine Nigeria’s industrial ambition.

He said, “The defining strength of this policy is its insistence on implementation. This administration will not measure success by the number of documents we produce.

“We will measure success by the number of factories that open their gates at dawn, by the jobs created for our young men and women, by the exports that leave our ports bearing the mark of Nigerian excellence, and by the value retained within our own economy.”

The president said it prioritised strategic sector focus anchored on the nation’s comparative and competitive advantages.

“It advances value chain development so that Nigeria moves steadily from exporting raw materials to producing finished goods.

“It integrates our micro, small, and medium enterprises into the heart of industrial growth, because prosperity must not be exclusive.

“It aligns infrastructure and energy with industrial ambition, for factories cannot run on policy alone. It strengthens skills, technology, and innovation to prepare our people for the industries of today and tomorrow,” the president added.

Tinubu commended the Minister of State for Industry, Sen. John Enoh, “for his disciplined leadership and clarity of purpose in driving” the process.

He added that the minister had demonstrated that policy leadership was not about noise, but about substance, coordination, and follow-through.

He also applauded the Ministry’s technical teams, industry stakeholders, manufacturers, investors, and practitioners for shaping the “policy into a document.

The Chairman, Dangote Group of Companies, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, thanked the Federal Government for introducing a progressive industrial policy.

Dangote observed that Nigeria was the only country in Africa where the private sector is bigger than the government.

Dangote said domestic manufacturers are pleased with the policy the Tinubu administration has created, expressing firm belief that “the Naira, this year, will be at N1,000 to $100.”

He disclosed that many investors were willing to invest in Nigeria due to exchange rate stability and other economic reforms.

Dangote suggested that the only thing remaining is the protection of indigenous industries, saying, “if there is no protection, there is no way any industry will thrive here.” (NAN)

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