FG Moves To Revive Cotton, Textile, and Garment Value Chain.

Amb. Nura Rimi in blue cap, being decorated by the Chairman NUTGTWN @ the ongoing 13th Delegate Conference in Abuja

"The Cotton, Textile, and Garment (CTG) Sector used to be the liveliest sector of Nigeria's economy, employing at least 450,000 Nigerians, and operating over 170 textile mills throughout the country but today operates around 20,000 jobs with less than 20 mills." Amb. Nura Rimi

The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment, has expressed the desire of the Federal Government to revamp the country's cotton, textile, and garment sectors.

This was revealed by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Amb. Nura Abba Rimi at the 13th Delegates Conference of the National Union of Textile, Garment, and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria which ended on Wednesday in Abuja.

During the ceremony, Ambassador Rimi remarked that the strength, integrity, and complexity of a country's industrial sector greatly affects its economic well-being. 

"This is why the Federal Government has initiated a lot of reforms geared towards resuscitating the Cotton, Textile and Garment (CTG) Sector, particularly in policy development and implementation and this has greatly impacted both the industry and the economy at large, in the country" he said. 

Nura, in a statement issued and signed by the Director Press and Public Relations Department of the Ministry, Adebayo Thomas, recalled the sector's boisterous past, stating that the Cotton, Textile, and Garment (CTG) Sector used to be the liveliest sector of Nigeria's economy, employing at least 450,000 Nigerians, and operating over 170 textile mills throughout the country. He did, however, expressed unhappiness with the sector's slide to around 20,000 jobs with less than 20 mills, which he deemed unacceptable, and urged all efforts to ensure that the sector is properly revitalised. 

The PS emphasised recent Federal Government efforts, which included the granting of a 100 billion Naira loan facility through the Bank of Industry to retool, upgrade, and purchase equipment. Over the years, this lending facility has benefited not less than 35 Textile Industries (10 garment firms, 10 ginneries, and other companies that provide critical services to the sector throughout the country). 

Other measures include the delivery of seeds to cotton producers through a collaboration between the Ministry and the Raw Material Research and Development Council. 

Similarly, the government reclassified petrol prices and supply to the CTG sector to cut production costs from $7.62 Mscf (thousand standard cubic feet) to $3.36 Mscf. At the same time, the Ministry is actively issuing Import Duty Exemption Certificates (IDECs) to duty

free machinery and spare parts importers. He also mentioned the 

Federal Government's Executive Order 003, which aims to boost local patronage and increase market access in the sector and urged people in the industry to reconsider their strategy to capitalize on 

government procurement processes. 

Finally, he stated that the Ministry is currently finalising the textile adjustment tax levy, with a 30% levy being remitted to the Bank of Industry for sector use through the CTG Fund 2. 

He concluded that the prospects and challenges in the CTG Sector necessitate cross cutting efforts and careful and strategic action by both government agencies and the private sector to achieve the desired result.