Business
Nigeria To Privatise Raw Materials Sector for Growth – Minister

Set up Council for Industrial Revitalisation
▪︎ MAN, RMRDC agog
Cover image: From left to right: Interim Chairman of Pan African Manufacturers Association, Engr Mansur Ahmed; MAN President, Otunba Francis Meshioye; Deputy Director, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Olumuyiwa Ajayi-Ade, at the NME, and NIRAM EXPO 2023 in Lagos.
By Ocheneyi Alli
The Federal Government of Nigeria is considering to privatise the country’s industrial raw materials sector for development by local or foreign investors.
Doris Anite Uzoka, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, gave this hint, during the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), and the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC)’s ongoing Manufacturing Equipment and Raw Materials Exposition, in Lagos.
At the event which will end tomorrow, themed ‘ Future Manufacturing: A Roadmap To Enabling Environment With Sustainable Industrialisation,’ the Minister said ,” we must privatise our raw materials sector to support our Manufacturing industries and by focusing on value addition and local content development; we can reduce our reliance on imported raw materials and improve the overall competitiveness of our products.
This will also contributes to the growth of the SMEs and empower local entrepreneurs to participate actively in the manufacturing value chain.
Represented by Olumuyiwa Ajayi- Ade, a Deputy Director at the ministry, the Minister, also disclosed : ” since my assumption of office, with the approval of President Tinubu, a Presidential Council For Industrial Revitalisation, has been established, with the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy – Wale Edun, as the Chairman, and myself as the Vice Chair.
In addition, various Task Forces have been formed to effectively implement the mandates of the Presidential Council…”
In picture: A tour of the RMRDC exhibition stand by the representative of the Minister, Olumuyiwa Ajayi -Ade, led by Otunba Francis Meshioye, President of MAN, and other top dignitaries

The Minister enjoined all the stakeholders- manufacturers, policy makers , investors including the industry experts to ” let us work together to shape the manufacturing sector in Nigeria, in-line with Mr. President’s “Renewed Hope Agenda.”
There are so many projects now at the RMRDC… if only we can get genuine and willing investors to take over these projects and start the raw materials productions in large quantity. It will go a long way in the supply of raw materials for our industries
Dr. Abubakar Aliyu, a former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology , applauded the government’s policy intention to privatise the country’s raw materials sector, given the facts that the efforts of the RMRDC alone coupled with the 100 companies operating in the sector are not enough to meeting the industrial sector’s demands for local raw materials.
Dr. Aliyu, a former Director-General of the RMRDC, spoke as the guest speaker on the topic ‘ Opportunities For Jobs Creation and Wealth Generation with Emphasis on Raw Materials Value Addition.
He said that since the establishment of the RMRDC in 1987 till- date , it had researched , developed, patented and established 100 Technology Innovation Centers (TICs) to address local raw materials development.
All these TIC have been brought under one umbrella because of the insecurity situations across the country now.
We can hardly move to every sites where there are raw materials to establish model factories. This was why the TIC have been brought under one location in Abuja.
There are so many projects now at the RMRDC.. if only we can get genuine and willing investors to take over these projects and start the raw materials productions in large quantity. It will go a long way in the supply of raw materials for our industries.
He further said that besides the 100 TICs, there are 100 individual companies that have been producing fertiliser raw materials in Nigeria.
” Unfortunately, the 100 companies are not able to produce enough to meeting local demand. Nigeria needs about 3 million metric tons of the urea fertiliser and 5 million metric tons of the NPk fertiliser.
We need to do more; that’s why I said if we can get correct investors to invest in organic fertiliser, I believe that after few years, we can ban the importation of organic fertiliser in Nigeria,” he said.
Otunba Francis Meshioye, the President of MAN, also the government to also establish synergy between trade and industrial policies.
” It will be a great legacy if this is achieved during your tenure because industry and trade are under your portfolio.
In addition, it will also be great if your tenure births a new Industrial Policy for the country,” he said.
He said that beyond the government’s solutions, local manufacturers should begin to switch their manufacturing plants to Industry 4.0 advanced manufacturing technologies into their production processes, so that they can realize greater revenue and profits from their investments.
” If manufacturers can efficiently balance a combination of efficient economies of production and supply chains; strong and reputable products; loyal customers; an established logistics network; as well as reliable on-line business elements, they will be well-positioned in the future to compete favourably in the industrial marketplace,” he said.
Business
How were Donald Trump’s tariffs calculated?
In total, more than 100 countries are covered by the new tariff regime.

Charts credit: White House/ BBC Verify
US President Donald Trump has imposed a 10% tariff on goods from most countries being imported into the US, with even higher rates for what he calls the ”worst offenders”.
But how exactly were these tariffs – essentially taxes on imports – worked out? BBC Verify has been looking at the calculations behind the numbers.
What were the calculations?
When Trump presented a giant cardboard chart detailing the tariffs in the White House Rose Garden it was initially assumed that the charges were based on a combination of existing tariffs and other trade barriers (like regulations).
But later, the White House published what might look like a complicated mathematical formula.


But the actual exercise boiled down to simple maths: take the trade deficit for the US in goods with a particular country, divide that by the total goods imports from that country and then divide that number by two.
A trade deficit occurs when a country buys (imports) more physical products from other countries than it sells (exports) to them.
For example, the US buys more goods from China than it sells to them – there is a goods deficit of $295bn.
The total amount of goods it buys from China is $440bn. Dividing 295 by 440 gets you to 67% and you divide that by two and round up. Therefore the tariff imposed on China is 34%.
Similarly, when it applied to the EU, the White House’s formula resulted in a 20% tariff.
Are the Trump tariffs ‘reciprocal’?
Many commentators have pointed out that these tariffs are not reciprocal.
Reciprocal would mean they were based on what countries already charge the US in the form of existing tariffs, plus non-tariff barriers (things like regulations that drive up costs).
But the White House’s official methodology document makes clear that they have not calculated this for all the countries on which they have imposed tariffs.
Instead the tariff rate was calculated on the basis that it would eliminate the US’s goods trade deficit with each country.
Trump has broken away from the formula in imposing tariffs on countries that buy more goods from the US than they sell to it.
For example the US does not currently run goods trade deficit with the UK. Yet the UK has been hit with a 10% tariff.
In total, more than 100 countries are covered by the new tariff regime.‘
Lots of broader impacts’Trump believes the US is getting a bad deal in global trade.
In his view, other countries flood US markets with cheap goods – which hurts US companies and costs jobs.
At the same time, these countries are putting up barriers that make US products less competitive abroad.So by using tariffs to eliminate trade deficits, Trump hopes to revive US manufacturing and protect jobs.
But will this new tariff regime achieve the desired outcome?
BBC Verify has spoken to a number of economists. The overwhelming view is that while the tariffs might reduce the goods deficit between the US and individual countries, they will not reduce the overall deficit between the US and rest of the world.
“Yes, it will reduce bilateral trade deficits between the US and these countries.
But there will obviously be lots of broader impacts that are not captured in the calculation”, says Professor Jonathan Portes of King’s College, London.
That’s because the US’ existing overall deficit is not driven solely by trade barriers, but by how the US economy works.For one,
Americans spend and invest more than they earn and that gap means the US buys more from the world than it sells. So as long as that continues, the US may continue to keep running a deficit despite increasing tariffs with it global trading partners.
Some trade deficits can also exist for a number of legitimate reasons – not just down to tariffs. For example, buying food that is easier or cheaper to produce in other countries’ climates.
Thomas Sampson of the London School of Economics said: “The formula is reverse engineered to rationalise charging tariffs on countries with which the US has a trade deficit.
There is no economic rationale for doing this and it will cost the global economy dearly.”
Business
CBN denies introducing N5000, N10,000 notes

The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has denied introducing new N5,000 and N10,000 notes.
CBN described the reports as false.
There has been widespread reports that the CBN had unveiled the high-denomination bank notes to enhance cash transactions.
The report said the apex bank was set to introduce the new notes to reduce cash-handling costs and improve liquidity management.
Some of the reports attributed the introduction of the new notes to a supposed Deputy Governor, Dr Ibrahim Tahir Jr.
It was reported that the new notes would be released from May 1, 2025.
However, posting the reports on its X page, the CBN wrote: “This content is NOT from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Kindly note that the official website of the CBN is cbn.gov.ng.”
Business
Italy Funding Africa’s coffee industry with €15 million
The UNIDO Director -General, Gerd Müller, emphasized the urgency and significance of the partnership, stating: “Around 125 million people worldwide depend on coffee for their livelihoods.

Image credit: The Expressowork
The government of Italy is making €15 million available to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) for the promotion of sustainable coffee production in Africa.
The funding arrangement was signed recently by Debora Lepre, the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Italy to the International Organizations in Vienna, and the UNIDO Director- General, Gerd Muller.
Ambassador Lepre expressed Italy’s commitment to supporting sustainable agriculture and economic resilience, stating: “The signing of this funding arrangement marks an important milestone in our long-standing collaboration with UNIDO and aims to trigger a chain reaction to attract other partners and investments, promoting a new paradigm of development cooperation as a partnership between equals.”
The UNIDO Director -General, Gerd Müller, emphasized the urgency and significance of the partnership, stating: “Around 125 million people worldwide depend on coffee for their livelihoods.
This programme will help to improve the lives of the people at beginning of the coffee supply chain. Better jobs and better incomes for families and communities. I am very grateful to the Government of Italy and to all of our other partners in this initiative. Transforming Africa’s Coffee Sector: UNIDO and Italy Drive Climate-Resilient Solutions.”
Coffee remains one of the world’s most important cash crops deeply embedded in our cultures and economies, sustaining over 12.5 million farms globally.
In Africa, coffee accounts for approximately 12% of the global production.
Coffee plays a fundamental role, representing a source of foreign currency, tax income generation, and jobs in both producing and consuming countries.
Despite the increasing global demand for coffee, the sector faces mounting challenges, including climate change, fluctuating global prices, and regulatory pressures, all of which threaten the livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers.
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