Automobile assemblers in the country under the aegies of Nigeria Automobile Manufacturers Association (NAMA) said it was rattled when the content of the proposed finance bill by the federal government seeking the approval of the National Assembly to approve reduction of duties paid on imported vehicles into was released to the public.
Speaking at the just concluded Nigeria Auto Journalists Association 2020 Training/Capacity Building Workshop held in Lagos, Remi Olaofe, executive director, Nigeria Automobile Manufacturers Association said the proposed bill by the federal government has a lot of short, medium and long term negative implications that is ticking both for the economy and auto assemblers in the country.
The NAMA boss lamented the treat the proposed finance bill by the federal government will pose to the to Nigeria’s Automotive Industrial Development Plan (NAIDP) and the new automotive policy.
Olaofe also wondered how level of negative perception that would be created in the area of policy inconsistency that could result in reversal of huge foreign investments being channeled to the sector of the country’s economy.
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Another area of concern is the envisaged pressure on the already scarce foreign exchange with its attendant pressure on the trade balance of the country.
The NAMA boss also frowned at the avoidable gross failure of ancillary industries that largely depend on the automotive assemblers.
Added to fears expressed by Olaofe during his remarks at the last NAJA workshop is likelihood of worsened unemployment from layoffs and business failures, with Nigeria returning to vehicles dump ground, as well as the envisaged takeoff of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA).
Remi Olaofe recalled that, the christening of the National Automotive Industry Development Plan (NAIDP) in 2013 and the subsequent increase in the import tariffs on fully built vehicles (FBUs) attracted the interest of leading auto assemblers, all of which he cautioned should not made to regret the massive investment they made in setting up the assembly plants, with most of the newly established assembly plants still at their teething stage.
He further said that at the moment, NAMA is already engaging the government issue.
