NOA, SON, SMEDAN LEAD OTHERS TO PROMOTE MADE IN NIGERIA GOODS
REPORTER: UJU UDUEZUE
The National Orientation Agency (NOA) in Anambra State has organised a one day interactive forum to encourage popular patronage of locally made goods and services.
At the event, which took place at Okpoko, the State Director of NOA, Mr. Charles Nwoji, said the interaction was designed to exchange ideas with entrepreneurs and manufacturers in the state on how to promote made in Nigeria goods, which he noted would help to grow the nation’s economy.
Mr. Nwoji decried the attitude of some Nigerian manufacturers, who had resorted to deceptive branding of their products by packaging them with foreign labels, which made the products to lose their identity.
The NOA Director noted that Okpoko was chosen for the event because of its human resources in small and medium scale enterprises.
He encouraged local industries to improve the quality of their products, which he explained, would help to revive moribund industries and boost foreign reserve.
In a paper
presentation on the challenges before Small and Medium Scale Enterprises and Industrialists in the South East Region of Nigeria, Dr. Uju Ezenekwe of Economics Department, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, described medium and small scale industries as the bedrock of development to any nation.
Dr. Ezenekwe said that the only way to create wealth was for the nation to consume what it produced.
She listed poor managerial skills , power and poor capacity building as some of the challenges confronting Medium and Small Scale industries in the country.
Also, the Assistant Director Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) Dr. Romanus Isife, noted that SON had a key role in ensuring that goods meant for export complied with minimum requirements.
For his part, the Principal Enterprise Officer, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) Mrs. Chinyelu Nwokoye, said they did not give loan but collaborated with other agencies like the Bank of Industry and Bank of Agriculture to access loan.
She stressed the need for business owners to pay close attention to packaging their products to meet international standards.
The President, Awka Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, Princess Caroline Ajuora, identified lack of funding as one of the major challenges facing the SMEs and called on relevant institutions to help in accessing grants and loans from the government.
The small scale business operators used the occasion to showcase their products as they spoke with Radio Nigeria on their challenges, which among other things included funding.
The NOA assured the gathering that all the complaints from the operators would be relayed to appropriate agencies of government for immediate action.
The theme of the Interactive Forum was “mainstreaming the patronage of made in Nigeria goods and services as a panacea for economic Development and Job creation.”
