Productivity measures economic performance when a known quantity of goods and services produced (known as output) is compared with the quantity of inputs used in producing it. In the Nigerian economy, productivity is regrettably practised in a reverse mode, which has led to an unproductive economy. This is because the system has accepted deep systemic corruption in official places, and the “system” has jettisoned the strong work ethics and values in the entire society, to freely chase undeserving “free lunch” driven by greed, crazy urge and an inordinate ambition to make ill-gotten wealth.
These unpatriotic people placed in positions of authority are not willing in any way to uphold the responsibilities committed to their charge, as tasks are recklessly abandoned or official jobs not even done satisfactorily, at the expense of the nation. The empirically observed un-productivity in the economy does not imply laziness and lack of intelligence, but it is a general weakness in moral values of most employees; which most likely could be greatly connected to poor remuneration with little or no encouraging motivational packages from employers. A classical example is the current industrial relations dispute and tussle over the minimum wage issue between labour unions and the government. Such situations are generally counterproductive in an economy.
In the days of Olusegun Olutoyin Aganga, as the minister of industry, trade and investment (between 2011 and 2015), under President Goodluck Jonathan, he initiated and introduced Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) to create jobs, generate wealth, diversify the economy, substitute imports, boost exports, and widen tax base for the economy. However, this laudable economic vision for the country was short-lived after he left office. What a policy somersault by the subsequent regime, thereafter, which snowballed to de-industrialisation all through, such that its consequences and repercussions are still haunting the nation’s economy. The disconnect clearly manifests in the impact of very weak political will to sustainably implement viable and valuable economically strategic visions or policies that ought to take the nation’s economic growth to a higher level. That regime undoubtedly lacked the content and capacity to sustain the existing local manufacturing industries by foreign investors that eventually relocated to neighbouring West African countries due to the harsh operating economic environment. The scorecard of that regime indicated lack of ability to efficiently convert the available inputs into locally manufactured outputs; to make the nation a truly productive economy.
Manufacturing policy in Nigeria ought to be an economic promotional tool of the government, urgently needed to strategically incubate and protect local manufacturers (especially at their infant stages) from their foreign counterparts, by providing the necessary investment processes with encouraging established procedures that can lure more investors (both local and foreign) into this already battered economy. The essence of such a strategy is to turn the entire economic and commercial atmosphere into an attractive futuristic economy that is provided with infrastructure that generally reduces the cost of production and creates a level playing ground to aid progressive growth of all businesses. Such provisions from the government, most likely, can transform and position the economy as a viable market for investments (based on population and the needed security infrastructure); along with other privileges, enable manufacturers to embark on successful competitive markets outside the shores of the nation.
Industrialisation in the manufacturing sector should be the key programme of action of the ruling government, where a state of emergency should be declared under an operation to flood the economy in all the 774 local government areas with cottage industries and manufacturing outfits that cut across all the economic sectors, along their several and respective value chains of the economy.
Nigeria as a nation should not be further manipulated through poor performance in governance. With all that is happening in the economic sector presently, political manipulations ought to give way, and let the ailing economy be salvaged first because the country has the needed potential to survive economically if properly harnessed. It is therefore important that the current administration opens a listening ear to the cries of the general populace for economic survival. All the good economic initiatives by the government (made both now and in the past) should be sincerely implemented, to make this economy move forward and recover lost grounds for the expected economic development. History shall be merciful to the leaders who will turn around this potentially great economy from the current state of economic comatose to vibrancy, once again. Everyone is therefore urged to participate by making selfless sacrifices — (at whatever micro level), devoid of the wickedness meted against the suffering poor masses and civil society in general by those in authority — in rebuilding this economy because, if successfully realised, the legacy shall be sustainably bequeathed to future generations.
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