Public affairs analyst, Dr. Muda Yusuf has posited that Nigeria has continued to mortgage its future by not investing in people and wasting public resources by promoting import policy above domestic production.
Yusuf, who made this declaration in a policy brief titled ‘Import Liberalisation and the Risks of Deindustrialisation in Nigeria,’ said the debate went far beyond petroleum products.
“Every imported petroleum cargo represents exported jobs, exported industrial opportunities, additional pressure on foreign reserves, Weakening of local value chains, reduced domestic capacity utilisation, and import dependence weakens national economic resilience,” he said.
According to the economist and chief executive officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), domestic refining, on the other hand, strengthens Energy security, Foreign exchange conservation, Job creation, Industrial linkages, Backward integration, Balance of payments sustainability, and Macroeconomic stability.
A nation that produces what it consumes builds resilience. A nation addicted to imports builds vulnerability. He recalled that Nigeria’s recent experience with food importation clearly illustrates the dangers of excessive liberalisation.
According to him, Largescale food imports disrupted local agricultural value chains, weakened incentives for domestic farmers and undermined investments in local production. He noted that imports helped moderate the prices of some food items, thereby providing temporary relief to consumers.
However, the experience underscores the imperative of balancing short-term consumer welfare with long-term domestic productive capacity.
