Local contractors in
Akwa Ibom State have urged the state government to always consider them while awarding contracts as provided in the local content act.
Speaking at the First Contractors’ Summit organised by Ibom Contractors Association in Uyo, the Chairman of the association, Mr Aniekan Bassey, said the association would consult with the government on the need to involve them in building the state.
Bassey said the association had a monitoring team that supervised contracts being executed by members to ensure quality jobs.
“Government should carry us along in building the state, but we cannot fight or force the government to give us jobs. “As an association, we will ensure that our members deliver quality jobs,” he said.
Also speaking, former Director in Akwa Plams, Mr Patrick Udofia, said the growing technological polarization between developed and developing nations called for the need to implement the local content act.
“This requires multinational firms to use a certain proportion of locally made parts and components in their activities to increase skills and employment opportunities. “Nigeria has recorded 380 billion dollars in capital flight between when oil was discovered and 2010 when the Nigerian content policy was initiated. “Today, over 300,000 direct job opportunities have been created in engineering and technical services,” he said.
Udofia, however, said that local firms were being bypassed by foreign firms due to lack of monitoring and the inconsistency of the Nigerian content act with other legislation.
He urged the Federal Government to invest in power supply, gas master plan and infrastructure to drive relevant technological advancement.
He said the development of the iron and steel industry was also strategic in developing the country.
“There is need to encourage collaborative efforts and partnerships amongst local players to ensure maximum utilisation of indigenous capacity,” he said.