The Federal Government has revealed plans to build manufacturing hubs in each of the country’s six geopolitical zones in order to produce necessary building materials, lower import costs, generate employment, and accelerate economic growth.
This was disclosed by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Musa Dangiwa during a courtesy visit from the Executive Chairman, Zheng Xiaopeng and Vice Chairman of the Yiwu China-Africa Business Council, High Chief Mike Yousuf Ugwu at his office in Abuja, according to a statement on the Ministry’s website.
Dangiwa said that the Federal Government is willing to collaborate with investors in order to make this idea a reality. These investors will provide funding and project management, work to recover their costs, and ultimately turn over the hubs back to the government.
“We want to tell you that we have one project that we are designing to build; Building Materials Manufacturing Hub. We want to build a hub whereby we have industries or factories that are producing building materials.
“So, that is our invitation. We want to collaborate with any investor willing to bring funding to build the hub, even if it is two or three hubs, manage it, recoup the investment then give us after recouping the investment,” he said.
The Housing Minister provided additional information about the proposed manufacturing hubs’ locations, stating that they will be built in the following states: Gombe State (North East), Sagamu, Ogun State (South West); Aba, Abia State (South East); Warri or Asaba, Delta State (South-South); Ajaokuta, Kogi State (North Central); and Kano, Kano State (North West).
Dangiwa explained the idea of the manufacturing centers for building materials, stating that these hubs would create products like doors, ceilings, roofing sheets, and tiles. They will have basic amenities like power, water, and worker housing, guaranteeing a cozy setting where employees may remain until their jobs are finished.
Interested investors will be given at least 100 hectares of land, and they will be responsible for bringing in and managing the machinery and equipment needed for manufacturing. The size of these hubs can be modest, medium, or enormous, depending on what the investors propose.
The Minister gave assurances about security, saying that the sites chosen are safe and well-located in regions where markets for building materials are already established.
Investors are encouraged to submit their own designs to align with the ministry’s concept, as the ministry will not provide specific designs. The Minister highlighted the Chinese model, where building materials are manufactured and then imported to Nigeria, with the goal of replicating this model locally to reduce import costs, create jobs, and boost economic growth.
