A new Vehicle Finance Scheme expected to be launched by the Federal Government holds opportunity for many Nigerians to be able to own new cars.
The initiative as announced by the Federal Government is part of the 5-point comprehensive programme of the National Automotive Industry Development Plan (NAIDP) which is geared towards encouraging the production of vehicles and motor parts locally.
The Director-General of the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Jelani Aliyu, announced this during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.
“The NADDC is working on a Vehicle Finance Scheme that will enable Nigerians to easily own and drive these technologically advanced brand new cars. We have reached an advanced stage of discussion with some commercial banks, and as soon as we receive the necessary approvals, we shall deploy the programme,” Aliyu said.
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According to the DG, under the scheme, individuals with a sustainable source of income would be able to acquire the choice of their car by depositing 10percent of the total cost and then the balance would be paid in monthly instalments within a stipulated number of years.
“We have a worked out proposal in front of our superiors and once they give us that go ahead, we will start the project because we have the money set aside for it. The targeted beneficiaries will be any Nigerian who can prove that they have a sustainable income, whether you work in the civil service, in the private sector or you are doing your own business,” he said.
While explaining the details of the scheme, Aliyu said it will cover all the vehicles produced in Nigeria that have maintenance infrastructure available locally and he hopes that the scheme will commence before the end of the second quarter.
To meet the demand when the scheme kicks off, the DG said the council was working with both local and international companies to set up assembly and production plants in Nigeria.
“We are not the one that will produce these vehicles, but we will work closely with investors and other stakeholders in the sector to ensure that the necessary support is given to them. We are building a comprehensive ecosystem that allows the production of vehicles in Nigeria and thereby creating jobs for our youths,” the NADDC boss said.
Meanwhile, the announcement is coming few days after the DG had earlier said at the unveiling of Nigeria’s first locally assembled electric car, Hyundai Kona that the Federal Government is targeting that at least 30 percent of passenger vehicles in Nigeria will be electric cars by 2025.
Nigeria would not be left out in the transition from fuel-powered vehicles to electric cars, Aliyu said while giving a speech at the unveiling.
The NADDC boss said the Stallion Group, which led the innovation in electric cars in Nigeria, has invested about $300 million in Nigeria. According to him, the Federal Government has invested about $1 billion in the auto industry in Nigeria as of 2019.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo, said electric cars would lead to a reduction in fuel consumption and environmental degradation.
He said the Trade Ministry has been working with NADDC to review the automotive policy to further strengthen the automotive industry in Nigeria.
