Ogun State is currently Nigeria’s number one industrial hub, given the high level of manufacturing investment inflows into the state in recent times. Over 140 manufacturers set up factories in Ogun State within the last seven years, according to data from the state government.
A three-year data from the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) surveys (2014-2017), compiled by BusinessDay, show that Ogun State has over 70 percent share of manufacturing investments in the country within the three-year period, while Lagos and the rest share the remaining 30 percent.
But manufacturers in some industrial clusters in Ogun State, specifically Agbara and Ota, are facing high logistics costs due to poor state of roads leading to these major industrial clusters.
Only recently, during the commissioning of Beloxxi Industries’ expansion projects at Agbara, Obi Ezeude, CEO of the company, appealed to Nigeria’s Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to help manufacturers at Agbara and Ota in rehabilitating the roads.
Whether the roads in question are federal or state roads is immaterial. So long as Ogun State remains the chief tax collector at Agbara and Ota, which play host to many manufacturing concerns, the onus of fixing the roads should fall on the state.
Early in 2017 the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) profile of Nigeria’s 36 states showing collections by states between January and June 2016. Lagos was highest with IGR totalling N150.59 billion, followed by Ogun State, which then collected N28.15 billion.
“The state government should be able to repair these roads to enable us reduce our logistics costs. It is important they do this to attract more investors,” said a senior manager in one of the manufacturing companies at Agbara.
The essence of collecting taxes and levies from firms, analysts say, is to build infrastructure that will benefit the taxpayers and the people. If investors who create jobs and pay taxes operate with poor state infrastructure, they may, at some point, begin to reduce their commitments or seek alternatives.
ODINAKA ANUDU
The writer can be reached via [email protected] or +2348067478413
