Nigeria should stop importing goods it can produce at home and use government buying power to grow local industry, the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan, said Saturday.
Senator Owan told the Redeemed Christian Church of God Lagos Province 35 Economic Summit that “demography alone does not guarantee economic growth.”
Owan said the administration’s Nigeria-First procurement policy — announced by President Bola Tinubu in 2025 — must be turned into predictable rules that encourage factories to invest and hire.
“Nigeria does not need to import what we can. We can clothe ourselves,” he said, adding that talks are underway between his ministry and the Bureau of Public Procurement to target sectors such as textiles, automotive, medical equipment and furniture.
The minister argued that steady government demand can unlock private investment and build local value chains, pointing to Bangladesh and Vietnam as models where predictability and focused policy drove exports and jobs.
He quoted manufacturers who said they do not need perfection — only predictable rules — to expand.
Owan warned that Nigeria’s large youth population will be a liability unless industry grows fast enough to absorb workers.
He said the government’s reforms aim to move the economy from short-term consumption to rule-based production, and urged that 2026 measures must deliver jobs, stronger industry and more trade.
