A journey of a thousand miles begins with a step.
This popular saying by our elders is our source of motivation, strength and focus. So, let us collectively address our problerns to achievable and realistic solutions so that our thousand miles journey will finally come to an end and a glorious one at that.
In dealing with the increase in prices of goods in Nigeria, we should look at some of the reasons why and how best we can alleviate them. Collectively, we can patronise our locally made good from food to fabrics, furniture and so on.
It is a trite fact that Nigerians do value foreign products more than locally made ones of the same kind. Various reasons have been advanced for this. One is vulnerability which, in simple sense, means local products do not last long, causing one to buy same product continuously and results to excessive waste of fund.
Another reason could be bad packaging. Our products are so badly packaged even when foreign ones are imitated.
Yet, we prefer foreign goods not because of the afore- mentioned reasons but for the sake of obsession. But that is not right. As humans, we have the power to control our desires and emotion and so should not let anything control us.
Incentives as a driving factor to boost production are extremely lacking in our system. Government and individuals have failed to give out enough incentives that can serve as driving force for better and faster production. An incentive is often a reward or bonus that rouses interest and it is a necessary requirement if we must get good reports from our production sector.
Our local manufacturers are complaining of negligence from the government in their small and medium scale businesses as there are no good mechanised equipment, no labour and little or no capital at all.
Application for loan is another cumbersome bureaucratic process. Applicants hardly get the loans even after completing the process. This is really disheartening and needs urgent attention.
Yet, the issue of double taxation has raised eyebrows in the industry. An individual managing a stainless aluminum workshop has to pay for a particular levy twice to a local government council because it is coming from two different people. This is unfair.
Improper regulation of taxation discourages small/medium scale ventures. Even those with dreams and knowledge are scared to go in because they might end up spending all their profit paying for billboard/signpost levy, environmental and so on. We are not saying these are bad levies but it should be properly regulated.
While we are critically looking at these, we should not also forget that even when there are opportunities in the production sector but without labour, it is a standstill mode. Our youths today do not want to partake in some kinds of work because they feel it is demeaning to their status as graduates, but let us bear in mind that we are crying out for employment.
Who else if not an educated fellow would know how best to manage the mecahanised equipment used in production factory? Why do we shy away from them in search for “white collar jobs” for years when we  can own or manage a fish farm or poultry farm for the government.
Today, not many students go into the higher institutions to study Agriculture. The few who do are ridiculed. This is wrong. Instead, we should encourage them because they will aid our poverty alleviation programme. We need people who would harness their skill into fruitful and evidential result. In as much as we do not agree with these happenings, we would rather talk more on solutions than linger on the problem.
To curb our preference for foreign goods, government should regulate the importation of some of the products we can produce ourselves and provide adequate fund to encourage small/medium scale enterprises (SME). Funds should be made available to process our raw materials to get the best of them, while agriculture should be promoted to alleviate hunger and unemployment.
In like manner, we should encourage our SMEs by creating awareness for consumers to purchase their goods, increase incentives for them, make provision for loans for them to improve their services.
For management of natural resources like the cash crops which are the raw materials, great care should be given to areas or locations where these resources are found.
Sensitisation programmes, trainings and workshops should be embarked upon by government and non-governmental organisations to better equip our youths.
Workshops should be held for farmers to learn how best to manage their farms, and free fertilisers should be given if necessary. The cost of tractors and harvesters are so expensive that an average farmer can barely afford. Government should negotiate the prices with dealers and sell at affordable rates to farmers.
Furthermore, an intense image laundry is required to encourage foreign investors and patronage from local and international consumers. Good public relations strategy should be put in place like random advertisements, jingles and testimonies from already existing users. This will go a long way in our image laundry exercise.
Also, if our factories are not functioning in full capacity, they should be restructured to fit the current age and demand. New, better equipped factories should be built for this purpose and skilled personnel employed for management. In building the factories, the government should avoid areas where farming activities are done.
It is pertinent to stress that the government should strictly work on a single tax programme to avoid double taxation. Taxes should be paid to a particular body at a particular time depending on the kind of business. Over taxation should be avoided as it would discourage SMEs. A proper tax jurisdiction concerning who is liable to collect tax or levy, whether it is the state, local government or community jurisdiction should be clearly defined.
We should try to produce and consume home made goods, talk good about them, relate it to our friends and families in deliberate campaign effort. And before one knows, our locally made goods would have become international brand that provides us good income.
Okwu wrote in from Port Harcourt.

Kellen Okwu