By Haruna Salami
The Senate has re-emphasised the important role of textile industry in the economic development of the nation and resolved to appeal to the federal government to provide the necessary infrastructural facilities, especially power supply to local textile manufacturing companies.
This was sequel to a motion on “urgent need to revamp the nation’s comatose textile industry” sponsored by Senator Kabir Barkiya, Katsina central.
The Senate noted the leading role of textile industry in the manufacturing sector of the Nigerian economy with over 140 companies in the 1960s and 1970s and an annual growth of 67 per cent as at 1991, employing over 25 per cent of workers in the manufacturing sector, making the industry the highest employer of labour after the civil service.
Regrettably, however, the Senate was concerned that the industry has witnessed massive decline in the last two decades with many textile companies such as Kaduna Textile, Kano Textile, Aba Textile, United Nigeria Textile, First Spinners, etc either closing shops and throwing their workers into the job market.
Government policies like increase in taxation, high cost of production, trade liberalization resulting in massive importation of textile materials were some of worrisome issues to Senate.
Senate therefore resolved to urge the federal government to restrict importation of foreign textile materials and also to assist textile manufacturers with soft loan through the bank of industry.
To the sponsor of the motion, Senator Kabir Barkiya the call for total ban of textile materials can start gradually with restriction of foreign textile materials
“Of course,.when we revamp our textile industry we have to restrict the importation of textiles and then after restriction, at the end of the day when we achieve certain level, we can now ban it completely”.
He said his concern for revamping of the textile industry is it’s capacity to provide employment opportunities for the unemployed youths in addition to raising country’s gross domestic product, GDP.