Manufacturers Seek Direct Access To Intervention Funds

A management consultant,

Mike Ogwubuike, has called on the Federal Government to ensure that the intervention funds meant to boost the manufacturing sector are accessed by the key players, whom the funds are aimed at benefiting.

He said it would be counter-productive for the funds to be diverted, saying such a trend would impact negatively on the economy.

Ogwubuike stated this while speaking in a training workshop organised by his consultancy outfit, mike consult, in Port Harcourt.

He also appealed to the government to encourage indigenous manufactures to invest more in flour and sugar production to reduce the cost of sourcing those raw materials abroad, adding that in the interim, the government could liberalise the importation of those raw materials as monopoly was counter productive and will lead to high pricing of products.

Ogwubuike who also own a bakery firm, identified poor infrastructure, high energy cost and multiple taxation as some of the challenges confronting the manufacturing sector and appealed to government to reduce the cost of flour and sugar.

According to him, “there should be intervention fund for manufacturers, which should be well managed and channelled – people who are serious players are supposed to handle the funds. But a situation, where those who are not qualified are allowed to benefit from those funds, is an act of economic blockade and it is wrong to exclude people who are really involved in the business.