More automakers at the global level are interested in assembling their vehicles in Nigeria, the Federal Government has said.
The response from these internationally renowned auto makers is fallout of the National Automotive Policy, said the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga.
The minister stated this, recently, after he inspected an auto assembly plant established at Isolo, Lagos by UVA Limited, a subsidiary of DANA GROUP. The plant, where Kia and Renault vehicles are assembled is designed to produce 25,000 vehicles per annum when all the lines have been completed and are in operation.
Aganga stated that as at the last count, 27 auto makers had indicated interest in assembling vehicles in the country and that the government never expected the level of interest.
“Nobody would expect a Nissan to assemble cars here that soon or that a Toyota will be working on a plan or a Ford or a KIA. Yes, we are extremely excited that we are moving in the right direction,” he said.
Aganga said he was pleasantly surprised by the UVA plant, saying that he did not expect that they had gone this far. “I knew they were working on it, but I didn’t know they had gone this far; that they have started assembling already and that they are assembling 24 cars a day of different makes and these are good quality cars.”
He also praised the type of equipment they have at the plant, which he believes shows that they had the right technical partners.
Aganga said what he saw during his travels abroad hardly matched the sophistication of the equipment at the Isolo plant and that the efficiency was remarkably different from what he had seen outside the country. “I have been to other plants in Nigeria as well as in South Africa.”
The minister also lauded the owners of the plant, saying that the government would support them. “Look at the number of young Nigerians that have been employed; all of them Engineers from different universities that may not have the experience if this was not here. You can see how important this is to the economy.”
This is just a beginning, he said, adding that a lot would be achieved in the next 20 to 30 years.
“For a country as big and as young as Nigeria, the market is big because everybody wants to ride a car and more people will buy a car if they can afford it.”
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