This was contained in the banking watchdog’s Economic Report for the First Quarter of the year.
The report noted that the $1,136.33million, which represented an increase of 15.1 and 9.3 per cent over the preceding and corresponding quarter in 2012, respectively, was driven largely by receipts from the industrial sector and manufactured goods.
According to the Report: “Total non-oil export earnings by Nigerian exporters stood at US$1,136.33million at the end of the review period. This indicated an increase of 15.1 and 9.3 per cent above the levels in the preceding quarter and the corresponding quarter of 2012.
“The development was attributed, largely, to the 66.9 and 70.3 per cent rise in receipts from the industrial sector and manufactured products, respectively.”
The apex bank added: “A breakdown of the proceeds in the review quarter showed that industrial, manufactured, agricultural, minerals and food products earned US$634.2 million, US$322.6 million, US$89.9 million, US$67.9 million and US$21.7 million.
“The shares of industrial, manufactured, agricultural and food products as well as mineral and transport in non-oil export proceeds were 55.8, 28.4, 7.9, 6.0 and1.9 per cent.”
Commenting on the CBN Report in Abuja, yesterday, the National President, Nigerian Association of Small Scale Industrialists, Chief Chuku Wachuku, said the report underscored the importance of the manufacturing sector as the pivot for the transformation of Nigeria’s economy.
He said: “The CBN’s report which said that receipts from manufactured goods was responsible for the significant increase recorded by the non-oil sector in the first quarter of 2013, is a very good development for not only the manufacturing sector in particular, but also for the economy in general.
“The report underscores the importance of manufacturing as the major driver of job creation and wealth generation globally.”
The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment recently kicked off the implementation of the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan, based on areas where the country currently has comparative and competitive advantage.
This, according to the Minister, Mr Olusegun Aganga, is part of efforts aimed at diversifying the nation’s economy by increasing non-oil earnings and contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product.
He said: “Nigeria has huge human and natural resources that are yet to be fully translated into wealth for our citizens. For decades, we have relied heavily on the oil and gas sector, which obviously has generated a lot of revenue for the Federal and state governments, but is less inclusive.
“The good news is that today, we have started reversing that process by focusing more on diversifying the earnings base and deliberately positioning our industries as key drivers of growth. We have started seeing some results.”
Aganga added that the Federal Government was committed to partnering the state, local governments and the Organised Private Sector on the provision of a sustainable enabling environment to fast-track the growth and development of the nation’s manufacturing sector in line with the goals of the NIRP.
He said: “We are creating a sustainable enabling environment that is capable of attracting and retaining both domestic and foreign investments. Government’s driving force has been the need to meaningfully improve the welfare of the average Nigerian by designing and implementing policies and strategies that will lead to inclusive economic growth.”
The Nation
No comments:
Post a Comment