Against the background of the coronavirus pandemic which has killed thousands around the world and left a devastating impact on global economy, the Federal Government has been urged to accord the manufacturing of medical devices a priority as a matter of national security.
Akin Oyediran, Managing Director of Jubilee Syringe Manufacturing Company in Awa, Onna council area of Akwa Ibom State, stated this in an interview with Businessday, saying that the outbreak of the COVID-19 has made it necessary for the country to be self-sufficient in medical devices manufacturing.
“We have to find a way as a country to encourage medical devices manufacturing and the way to do this is to discourage the importation of substandard products into the country,’’ he said.
Oyediran, who lamented the impact of the pandemic on the manufacturing sector, said a country like China was able to handle the spread of the virus because it took care of its medical needs by producing their own testing kits without having to depend on other countries.
He said his company had concluded plans to go into the manufacturing of facemasks, but that the pandemic scuttled the idea. He however expressed optimism that the company would embark on mask production as soon as possible.
He expressed dismay over the importation of low-grade medical devices into the country, adding that his company now has to compete with substandard products from other countries. He said that increasing the tariff on medical devices would help to protect the local manufacturers.
“The local manufacturers have invested a lot in putting up their factories and we have also spent a lot of money to ensure that the products we produce are of top quality. So, while we are maintaining the top medical product grade, we are now competing with substandard products in the market coming in from other countries. That is creating marketing problems for us. It also creates health problem for the population which also raises a national security issue.
“Government should increase the tariff on imported syringes, since we have the capacity to meet the demand of the country. This will ensure that the national security is taken care of, not depending on imported syringes into the country,” he said.
The managing director who lauded the Akwa Ibom state government for creating an “enabling environment” for the manufacturing sector to thrive through a good road network, said the markets are being affected by COVID-19 with a lot of interests in medical manufacturing.
“Our biggest competitors are from China; if they produce good quality syringes, the cost of producing good quality and bringing them to Nigeria is high, so they can’t compete with us. The problem is with the people that are producing non-medical syringes that are bringing them into the country. Non-medical syringes are very cheap to produce,” he said.
