Numbers mask structural challenges threatening economy – Okonji, CICAN Chair
The National Chairman of the Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN), Mr. Charles Okonji, has stated that numbers mask serious structural challenges threatening Nigeria’s industrial future.
Okonji, made this assertion during his opening speech to journalists, industrial leaders/experts, policymakers and stakeholders at the association’s 2025 End-of-Year Engagement Forum held at the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) House, Ikeja recently.
He advised that Nigeria must act swiftly to revive its struggling manufacturing sector if it hopes to secure long-term economic stability.
Okonji said that Nigeria is standing, “At a critical economic crossroads. While the country recorded a 3.98 per cent year-on-year growth in the third quarter of 2025, driven largely by services and agriculture”, he warned that the numbers mask serious structural challenges threatening Nigeria’s industrial future.
While noting that the manufacturing sector contributed 9.62 per cent to GDP in Q1 2025, the CICAN Chairman explained that the sector’s overall performance remains “modest and fragile. Between 2020 and 2024, manufacturing’s share of GDP has steadily declined, a trend he said signals “a deepening structural imbalance” that endangers Nigeria’s aspirations for industrialisation and sustainable economic growth.
Okonji outlined a long list of challenges plaguing the sector: Unreliable power supply, inadequate infrastructure, poor logistics networks, unstable foreign exchange conditions, and increasingly expensive credit. The sharp reduction in credit available to manufacturers, coupled with rising interest rates, he said, has “dramatically weakened the capacity of manufacturers to invest, expand, or even sustain operations.”
These constraints, he continued have sparked ripple effects across the economy, dwindling output, reduced job creation, and an overreliance on services rather than production.
“This is not the Nigeria we envisioned,” he said, recalling national commitments to industrial growth, export expansion, and economic diversification.
The 2025 Engagement Forum, he stressed, underscores CICAN’s belief that manufacturing remains central to Nigeria’s economic transformation, but only if government and the private sector act decisively.
Okonji, therefore, called for robust infrastructure investment, including access roads, efficient transport systems, modern storage facilities, and reliable, affordable energy. These, he argued, are “not luxuries, but essential prerequisites for industrial competitiveness.”
He also urged the government to adopt consistent, pro-manufacturing policies, ranging from strict enforcement of local-content rules to incentives that support local sourcing and protect indigenous manufacturers from undue disadvantages.
On fiscal and monetary matters, he emphasised the need to moderate borrowing costs and provide manufacturers with access to affordable, sector-specific financing to restore confidence and stimulate investment.
Beyond policies, the CICAN Chairman said Nigeria must undergo a mindset shift, recognising that reviving the industrial sector is fundamental to job creation, wealth generation, economic resilience, and the delivery of democratic dividends.
On the the role of the press, Okonji challenged CICAN members to use their platforms to advocate for reforms, highlight opportunities, expose gaps, and hold policymakers accountable.
He concluded with optimism, expressing hope that the ideas and discussions arising from the forum would “set the tone for a stronger, more resilient Nigerian economy in 2026 and beyond.”