President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has expressed confidence that Nigeria is set to take the lead in Africa’s raw materials export through the implementation of value addition, following the passage of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council Amendment Bill.
Akpabio made this known on Wednesday when he received a courtesy visit from the Director-General of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council, Professor Nnanyelugo Martin Ike-Muonso, and his team at the National Assembly.
According to a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Jackson Udom, Akpabio said the bill, once signed into law by President Bola Tinubu, “would be a moral compass for the rest of the continent of Africa.”;;
He explained that adding value to raw materials before export would have created more opportunities for industrial growth and job creation in the country.
“If any of the values were to be added in Nigeria before exporting them, we would have had at least, a factory for those chains that would have also created jobs for our people outside what the farmers are doing. Technological shifts would have also come in interms of innovations,”;; he said.
Akpabio further noted the importance of strengthening local production and research capacity. He said, “That having listened to the leadership of the council, it means that Nigeria is renewing its hope in terms of research, local production, input and value chain,”;; adding that “it is quite unfortunate that we produce cocoa in Nigeria but end up importing same cocoa products from outside the country at a higher cost and without any input.”;;
He also commended the sponsor of the bill, Deputy Senate Whip Senator Onyekachi Nwebonyi, stating, “I must commend the Nigerian Senate through the Deputy Senate Whip for the initiative.”;;
Describing the situation in the solid mineral sector as “pathetic,”;; Akpabio said the country is losing out due to lack of value addition.
“The most pathetic is the solid mineral sector, because we are not adding any value before we sell it, the result is you sell it at very cheap rate and if you sum it up, you will see that development in Africa in 2025 is still in a primitive state when it comes to recognizing and utilizing the potentials available within his domain. Poverty is really bitting harder because of nothing, but ignorance,”;; he said.
The Senate President urged the Council to embark on large-scale public education and training initiatives, especially targeting young Nigerians.
“We must not allow this to continue. If we now assist you by passing the Bill and the President signs it into law, Nigeria would have taken the step to ensure that whatever raw material is to be taken out of this country, must be given added value of at least, 30 percent,”;; he declared.
Earlier, the Director-General of the Council, Professor Ike-Muonso, thanked the Senate President for the audience and acknowledged the progress achieved under the current Senate leadership.
“We have seen the reforms like the Tax Administration Bills, but the one that concerns us most, is the Bill to amend the Act of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council, which is primarily to ensure that we do not export raw materials out of the country without it having at least, 30 percent of value added. It is indeed Nigeria’s and Africa’s number one bill that will change the fortune of this country because Nigeria is a leader in the continent,”;; he said.
He also sought the support of the Senate President for the passage of the bill and extended an invitation to the upcoming Africa Raw Materials Summit.
