The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), has said an accumulation of unsold goods across the manufacturing industries rose to N1.4trillion in 2024
President of MAN, Francis Meshioye, attributed the development on inflationary burden and declining purchasing power of customers.
Speaking on Wednesday at the 2025 edition of the Media Personality of the year award and presidential luncheon held in Lagos, Meshioye said Nigeria’s manufacturing sector in 2024 faced “a myriad of macroeconomic and infrastructural challenges that severely impacted its performance.”
According to him, the manufacturing sector faced mounting pressure from high inflation, a depreciating Naira, rising interest rates, escalating electricity tariffs, and record low sales, multiplicity of taxes, levies and militating security concerns.
He said: “These factors collectively strained the sector’s profitability and curtailed its contribution to the nation’s GDP.
“Inflation in Nigeria reached an alarming 34.6% by November 2024, diminishing consumers’ purchasing power and causing a decline in demand for manufactured goods. This inflationary burden also led to an accumulation of unsold inventory, which rose to N1.4 trillion across the manufacturing industries.”
The MAN president added that manufacturers were hit hard with “a drastic rise in electricity tariffs, with rates increasing by over 250%,” saying the surge in energy costs “became one of the highest operating expenses for businesses in the sector in 2024.”
He noted that as a result, a lot manufacturers sought alternative energy sources, further eating deep into their financial resources and complicating their ability to remain competitive.
Meshioye stated the devaluation of the Naira worked against the profitability of manufactured goods as the cost of importing raw materials skyrocketed.
“At the same time, the floating of the exchange rate resulted in a steep depreciation of the Naira, which fell from N666/$ in mid-2023 to over N1700/$ by mid-2024. This depreciation inflated the costs of imported raw materials and machinery, worsening the already strained profitability of manufacturers,” he said.
On the high interest rates, the president of MAN said, “Interest rates reached unprecedented levels, climbing to 27.7% by November 2024. This increase substantially raised borrowing costs, making it harder for manufacturers to access financing for expansion and modernisation.”
“The combination of high operational costs, reduced consumer demand, and limited access to finance contributed majorly to this decline.
“The rising interest rates, combined with inflation, severely limited the potential for investment in the sector, impeding long-term growth prospects,” he said.
In order to address some of the economic headwinds, the MAN President recommended, “Timely passage of the four tax bills before the National Assembly, implementation of the patronage of made-in-Nigeria products policy and taming of inflation.”
