NESG Raises Fresh Alarm Over Nigeria’s Manufacturing Sector As High Costs Threaten Industrial Growth

By Iroyin Yoruba Television News Desk

Nigeria's manufacturing sector is facing a fresh warning over its declining contribution to the national economy, with the Nigerian Economic Summit Group raising concerns that high energy costs, competition from imported products, inadequate financing and weak coordination of industrial policies are preventing the sector from reaching its potential.

The warning comes as Nigeria prepares for the 32nd Nigerian Economic Summit, where policymakers, manufacturers, investors and other stakeholders are expected to examine how the country can move from economic stabilisation toward stronger productivity, job creation and shared prosperity.

The economic policy group said manufacturing should be one of the major engines of Nigeria's structural transformation but has instead experienced a relative decline.

It said the country continues to export raw materials while importing finished goods, despite possessing abundant natural resources, a huge domestic market and a large workforce.

According to the group, the situation represents a structural imbalance that limits value creation, restricts employment opportunities and exposes the Nigerian economy to international commodity-price fluctuations.

The warning is particularly significant because manufacturing is expected to play a central role in Nigeria's efforts to diversify away from dependence on crude oil and create productive employment for a rapidly growing population.

The latest assessment does not suggest that Nigerian manufacturers have stopped producing.

Rather, it highlights the difficulty of expanding industrial production competitively in an environment where businesses face expensive electricity, costly finance, infrastructure weaknesses, regulatory problems, imported competition and other operating pressures.

The group said these problems are not temporary difficulties but the result of years of underinvestment and weaknesses in the structure of the economy.

Manufacturing At The Centre Of Nigeria's Economic Challenge

Manufacturing occupies an important position in the economic development plans of almost every developing country.

When factories expand, they do more than produce finished goods.

They purchase raw materials from farmers and suppliers, employ workers, use transportation companies, require financial services, generate demand for maintenance and engineering services and create markets for other businesses.

This interconnected system is commonly described as an industrial value chain.

For example, a food-processing factory may buy crops from farmers, packaging materials from local manufacturers, machinery from engineering firms and transportation services from logistics operators.

The finished products can then be distributed to retailers and exported to other countries.

The economic benefits therefore extend far beyond the factory itself.

The Nigerian Economic Summit Group says Nigeria has not developed enough of these deep backward and forward linkages.

The result is that much of the country's economic activity remains concentrated around the extraction or sale of primary commodities instead of moving toward higher-value production.

That problem has been identified as one of the major obstacles preventing Nigeria from achieving sustained industrial transformation.

Nigeria Still Exports Raw Materials And Imports Finished Products

One of the biggest concerns raised in the latest assessment is the continued dependence on the export of raw materials and the importation of finished goods.

Nigeria has large quantities of agricultural commodities and natural resources.

The country produces crude oil, natural gas, cocoa, sesame, cassava, rice and numerous other agricultural products.

Yet many of these commodities do not undergo enough processing within the country before being sold or exported.

This means that Nigeria can lose some of the highest-value stages of the production process.

Consider an agricultural commodity.

A farmer who sells an unprocessed crop may receive only a fraction of the value that could eventually be generated from the crop after processing, packaging, branding and distribution.

If another country buys the raw material, processes it into a finished product and then sells that product back to Nigerian consumers, Nigeria effectively participates in both ends of the transaction without capturing the full industrial value.

This pattern is one reason industrialisation is considered important.

The objective is not simply to produce more raw materials.

It is to build the capacity to process them domestically, manufacture finished products and develop businesses around those production systems.

That creates more jobs and expands the domestic tax base.

The Energy Problem

Energy costs remain one of the most serious obstacles facing Nigerian manufacturers.

Factories require reliable electricity to operate machinery, maintain production schedules, preserve products and support modern industrial processes.

When electricity from the national grid is unreliable, manufacturers are forced to find alternative sources.

That can include diesel generators, gas-powered systems, solar installations, battery storage and other forms of captive power.

Each alternative comes with additional costs.

For a manufacturer, electricity is therefore not simply another household bill.

It can determine whether a product is competitive.

If a factory spends substantially more on energy than a competitor operating in another country, the Nigerian manufacturer may have difficulty selling at an internationally competitive price.

The economic group specifically identified energy costs as a crippling challenge and said manufacturers frequently identify electricity as their single largest operational constraint.

The implication is straightforward.

Nigeria cannot expect manufacturing to expand rapidly if producers are spending excessive amounts of money simply keeping their machines running.

Electricity Costs Affect The Entire Production Chain

The impact of high energy costs extends beyond electricity bills.

When production becomes more expensive, manufacturers may increase the prices of their products.

Higher product prices can reduce consumer demand.

Lower demand can force companies to reduce production.

Reduced production can limit employment.

When employment is affected, household income and purchasing power can weaken.

The resulting cycle can become difficult to break.

Manufacturers can also respond by reducing working hours, delaying expansion or investing less in new equipment.

Some may decide that it is cheaper to import finished goods than to manufacture locally.

That creates an additional problem.

When local manufacturing becomes less competitive, imported products can capture more market share.

Domestic factories then lose sales, making it even harder for them to invest in expansion.

The issue therefore goes beyond the individual manufacturer.

It becomes a national economic problem.

Imported Products Create Another Challenge

The economic group also raised concern about import competition.

Imported products can sometimes be cheaper than locally produced goods because manufacturers in other countries may benefit from lower electricity costs, cheaper credit, more efficient ports, stronger supply chains, government incentives or economies of scale.

In some cases, imported products may also benefit from subsidies or other forms of support in their countries of origin.

Nigerian producers must then compete against products that entered the market with cost advantages they do not enjoy.

The problem becomes particularly serious when local manufacturers are already struggling with high production costs.

The group said import competition, particularly from subsidised products, has undermined domestic producers.

This does not necessarily mean Nigeria should close its economy to imports.

Imports are an important part of international trade and can provide consumers with products that are unavailable or too expensive domestically.

The challenge is creating a trade environment in which local manufacturers have a realistic opportunity to compete.

The Need For A Coordinated Industrial Policy

Another major issue highlighted by the group is the absence of sufficiently integrated industrial support.

Manufacturers often interact with several government institutions.

They deal with taxation authorities, customs officials, standards agencies, environmental regulators, state governments, local authorities, electricity providers and financial institutions.

If policies are poorly coordinated, businesses can face multiple requirements that increase costs and slow down production.

An industrial policy therefore needs to bring different elements together.

Tariffs, tax incentives, infrastructure, financing, local-content requirements, skills development and trade policy should reinforce one another rather than work in opposite directions.

The group said manufacturers in some comparable economies benefit from more coordinated support involving tariff structures, local-content requirements and targeted industrial financing.

Nigeria's challenge is therefore not necessarily a lack of individual policies.

It is also about implementation and coordination.

A government can announce an industrial policy, but if electricity remains unreliable, financing remains prohibitively expensive and regulations remain fragmented, factories may still struggle.

Financing Remains A Major Barrier

Manufacturing requires capital.

A factory cannot expand simply because demand increases.

The business may need new machinery, additional production lines, larger warehouses, raw materials, vehicles, power systems, skilled employees and technology.

All these investments require financing.

But access to affordable long-term finance remains difficult for many Nigerian businesses.

Short-term commercial loans can be expensive and may not match the long investment period required for industrial projects.

A manufacturer may need several years to recover the cost of a new production line.

If the financing used to purchase that equipment carries a very high interest rate, the cost of production can become unmanageable.

The latest concerns raised by the economic group therefore extend beyond the amount of credit available.

The issue is also the price and structure of that credit.

Nigeria needs financing that supports productive investment rather than simply short-term commercial transactions.

Why Long-Term Finance Matters

Industrial projects generally require longer-term capital.

A manufacturing company may invest billions of naira in machinery that will operate for 10, 15 or even 20 years.

The financing structure should therefore reflect the economic life of the investment.

If businesses are forced to rely heavily on short-term expensive loans, they may be reluctant to make major investments.

This can result in a vicious cycle.

Factories remain small because expansion is expensive.

Small factories cannot achieve economies of scale.

Without economies of scale, production costs remain high.

High production costs make local products less competitive.

Lower competitiveness reduces investment.

And lower investment prevents factories from becoming more productive.

The group has therefore called attention to development-finance instruments, blended finance and risk-sharing mechanisms that could improve access to productive-sector financing.

Capital Is Flowing To Faster-Return Sectors

Another issue identified in the assessment is how capital is allocated within the Nigerian economy.

Financial services, real estate and trading can sometimes offer relatively quicker returns compared with manufacturing.

An investor who puts money into a trading operation may potentially recover capital faster than someone building a factory.

Manufacturing projects often require substantial upfront investment before generating significant returns.

This can make them less attractive to investors seeking short-term profits.

The group described the resulting situation as both a market failure and a policy failure.

According to the assessment, manufacturing plants, agro-processing facilities and industrial infrastructure requiring long-term financing have struggled to secure sufficient investment.

That means Nigeria needs to consider how its financial system can encourage more capital to flow toward productive activities.

Manufacturing And Job Creation

The manufacturing debate is also a jobs debate.

Nigeria has a very large and youthful population.

The country's economic future depends heavily on whether its expanding workforce can find productive employment.

Financial services, telecommunications and parts of the oil industry can generate significant economic value, but many of these sectors do not employ workers on the scale required to absorb millions of new entrants into the labour market.

Manufacturing, agriculture, agro-processing, construction and small and medium-sized businesses can potentially provide more labour-intensive opportunities.

This is one reason the upcoming economic summit places jobs and productivity at the centre of its agenda.

The official summit framework identifies manufacturing and agro-processing among the sectors that can contribute to job-rich growth and industrialisation.

The question is how to make those sectors sufficiently competitive to expand.

Nigeria's Youth Population Adds Urgency

The urgency of the manufacturing debate becomes clearer when Nigeria's demographics are considered.

The Nigerian Economic Summit Group says the country's population has surpassed 220 million and that nearly 70 per cent of Nigerians are below the age of 35.

It also estimates that about 3.5 million people enter the labour force each year.

That creates enormous economic potential.

A large working-age population can support economic growth if people have productive jobs.

But the same demographic trend can create serious social and economic pressures if the economy cannot absorb new workers.

The group has therefore described the transition from jobless growth to job-rich growth as one of the country's defining challenges.

Manufacturing is part of the solution because factories can create direct employment while also supporting suppliers and service providers.

Manufacturing Can Support Small Businesses

A strong industrial sector can also create opportunities for smaller businesses.

Large factories need suppliers.

They may require packaging companies, transport operators, repair technicians, cleaning services, security providers, food suppliers, software developers, accountants, engineers and maintenance contractors.

A successful manufacturing cluster can therefore support thousands of businesses that are not directly owned by the factory.

This is why industrial policy is often broader than building factories.

It is about developing ecosystems.

When a country has strong industrial ecosystems, companies can obtain inputs more cheaply and quickly because suppliers are located nearby.

Workers develop specialised skills.

Transport infrastructure improves.

Banks become more familiar with industrial businesses.

Technical-service companies emerge.

The resulting network can increase productivity across the entire region.

Nigeria has some examples of such clusters, but the challenge is expanding them across more sectors and locations.

Agriculture Provides A Major Industrial Opportunity

The economic group also highlighted agriculture as a major opportunity for industrialisation.

Agriculture employs a large share of Nigeria's workforce but remains below its potential in productivity and value addition.

One major problem is post-harvest loss.

The group estimated that losses for many food commodities range from 30 to 40 per cent.

These losses occur because farmers and traders may lack adequate storage, processing facilities, cold-chain infrastructure and transportation.

When food spoils before reaching consumers, both farmers and the economy lose value.

Manufacturing can help solve part of this problem.

Processing plants can convert agricultural products into shelf-stable goods.

Cold-storage facilities can reduce spoilage.

Packaging companies can improve distribution.

Food-processing businesses can create new markets for farmers.

This is the type of backward and forward linkage that the economic group says Nigeria needs.

Cassava, Rice, Cocoa And Other Commodities

Nigeria has enormous potential in agro-processing.

Cassava can be processed into starch, ethanol, flour and other industrial products.

Rice can be milled and packaged domestically.

Cocoa can be processed beyond raw beans into higher-value products.

Sesame can be cleaned, processed and packaged for export.

Soybeans can support food, animal-feed and industrial value chains.

The goal is to keep more of the economic value inside Nigeria.

If more agricultural products are processed domestically, manufacturers can create jobs while farmers gain more stable markets.

It can also reduce Nigeria's dependence on imported food and industrial inputs.

However, successful agro-processing requires the same infrastructure needed by other manufacturing sectors.

Factories need electricity, roads, water, finance, skilled workers and access to markets.

That means solving manufacturing problems can simultaneously improve agriculture.

Special Economic Zones Could Play A Bigger Role

The economic group has also identified Special Economic Zones as one of the mechanisms that could help restore manufacturing competitiveness.

Special Economic Zones can provide businesses with infrastructure, streamlined regulations and other incentives designed to encourage investment.

When properly managed, they can create industrial clusters.

But simply designating an area as a Special Economic Zone does not guarantee success.

Investors need reliable electricity, efficient transportation, security, water, telecommunications and predictable regulations.

If those conditions are missing, companies may not move into the zone despite tax incentives.

The challenge is therefore to ensure that economic zones provide genuine cost advantages.

Local Content Can Create Domestic Markets

Local-content policies are another tool being discussed.

The idea is to encourage businesses operating in Nigeria to source a greater share of their inputs locally where competitive domestic alternatives exist.

Local content can help create markets for Nigerian manufacturers.

For example, if an industrial company buys equipment components from Nigerian suppliers, those suppliers can expand.

As they expand, they can employ more people and invest in better machinery.

However, local-content requirements need to be implemented carefully.

If local suppliers cannot meet quality, quantity or price requirements, forcing companies to use inadequate inputs can increase production costs.

The goal should therefore be to develop domestic suppliers that are genuinely competitive.

Technology Could Change Manufacturing

Digital technology is also becoming increasingly important.

Manufacturers can use technology to monitor production, reduce waste, manage inventories, track supply chains and improve quality control.

Automation can increase productivity where it makes economic sense.

Digital payments can make transactions more efficient.

Data systems can help businesses understand demand.

Artificial intelligence can potentially support predictive maintenance and logistics planning.

The challenge is ensuring that Nigerian companies have access to the technology and skilled workers needed to use it.

Technology adoption should therefore be accompanied by training.

A modern factory requires technicians who can operate and maintain increasingly sophisticated equipment.

Skills Shortages Matter

Industrialisation cannot happen without skilled workers.

Factories need electricians, welders, engineers, machine operators, mechanics, technicians, quality-control specialists, logistics professionals and managers.

If these skills are unavailable locally, businesses may have to import expertise or spend heavily on training.

That can increase costs.

Nigeria therefore needs closer cooperation between industry and educational institutions.

Technical colleges and universities need to understand what manufacturers actually require.

Companies should also be encouraged to participate in apprenticeships and workforce-development programmes.

The NESG's wider 2026 agenda places human capital alongside productivity as a central pillar of economic transformation.

Infrastructure Is More Than Electricity

Although electricity is one of the most frequently mentioned problems, manufacturing depends on several other forms of infrastructure.

Roads determine how quickly raw materials reach factories and finished products reach markets.

Ports influence the cost and speed of importing machinery and exporting goods.

Rail can provide more efficient long-distance transportation for bulk products.

Water is essential for many industrial processes.

Telecommunications are increasingly necessary for modern production.

Warehousing and logistics infrastructure can determine whether companies can maintain reliable inventories.

When these systems are weak, manufacturers must compensate privately.

They may build their own power plants, repair roads around facilities, provide private security or maintain expensive transportation arrangements.

Those additional costs reduce competitiveness.

The Port And Logistics Connection

Nigeria's manufacturing sector is closely connected to the country's ports.

Many factories depend on imported machinery, spare parts and raw materials.

If port procedures are slow or expensive, production costs rise.

Likewise, manufacturers that want to export finished products need efficient logistics.

A competitive manufacturing economy therefore requires ports that can process cargo quickly and predictably.

It also requires good roads and rail connections between ports and industrial areas.

This is one reason industrial policy cannot be separated from transport policy.

A factory can be highly efficient internally but still struggle if it takes too long and costs too much to move products to customers.

Regulation Must Become More Predictable

Businesses also need regulatory certainty.

Manufacturers make long-term investments.

They need confidence that major rules affecting their operations will not change unexpectedly.

Frequent policy changes can make investment planning difficult.

Companies may delay projects if they are uncertain about taxes, import rules, tariffs, foreign-exchange regulations or environmental requirements.

This does not mean regulations should be removed.

Environmental, safety, labour and consumer-protection rules remain necessary.

The issue is consistency and coordination.

Businesses should know what is required, how much it will cost and how long approvals will take.

Predictability is itself an economic asset.

Taxation And Manufacturing

Tax policy also influences competitiveness.

Manufacturers face federal, state and local taxes, levies and charges.

When several agencies impose overlapping requirements, businesses may spend considerable resources on compliance.

A well-designed tax system should raise government revenue without making productive investment unnecessarily expensive.

This is particularly important during periods when companies are already facing high energy and financing costs.

Tax incentives can also be used strategically to encourage investment in priority areas.

However, incentives should have clear objectives and measurable results.

They should not become permanent privileges for companies that would have invested anyway.

Nigeria Needs To Move Beyond Raw Materials

The central message from the latest warning is that Nigeria must move higher up the value chain.

Exporting raw materials can generate foreign exchange.

But processing those materials domestically can generate additional value, jobs, technology and business opportunities.

A cocoa-processing factory, for example, creates a different economic impact from simply exporting cocoa beans.

A petrochemical plant creates a different economic impact from exporting crude oil.

A food-processing industry creates a different economic impact from exporting unprocessed agricultural commodities.

Industrialisation is therefore not about abandoning primary production.

It is about connecting primary production to manufacturing.

Farmers, miners and oil producers should be linked to domestic processors and manufacturers where economically viable.

The Role Of Government

Government has an important role to play, but it cannot industrialise Nigeria by itself.

The private sector ultimately builds and operates most factories.

Government's responsibility is to create conditions in which productive investment makes economic sense.

That includes infrastructure, security, predictable regulation, access to finance, effective trade policy and appropriate incentives.

Government must also avoid policies that unintentionally increase the cost of production.

If electricity becomes more expensive without corresponding improvements in reliability, manufacturers may struggle.

If taxes increase without improving public services, businesses may reduce investment.

If import restrictions are introduced without building domestic production capacity, shortages or price increases can occur.

Industrial policy therefore requires careful sequencing.

The Role Of Investors And Manufacturers

Manufacturers also have responsibilities.

Companies must improve efficiency, adopt technology and invest in their workers.

Businesses cannot depend entirely on government support.

Companies that want to compete globally must meet international standards.

They need quality control, efficient management, modern equipment and reliable supply chains.

They also need to explore export opportunities.

Nigeria's domestic market is large, but manufacturers should increasingly consider regional and international markets.

The African Continental Free Trade Area provides an opportunity to sell Nigerian-made products across a much larger market.

However, Nigerian products must be competitive enough to win customers.

AfCFTA And The Opportunity For Nigerian Industry

Africa's integrated market could provide a major opportunity for Nigerian manufacturers.

Nigeria has one of the continent's largest consumer markets and a substantial industrial base.

If domestic manufacturers become more competitive, they can potentially export products to other African countries.

That could generate foreign exchange and expand production.

But regional trade also means Nigerian manufacturers will face competition from producers in other African countries.

The solution is not to avoid competition.

It is to become more productive.

A factory that can produce high-quality goods at competitive prices can benefit from a larger market.

A factory with high production costs will struggle even in its home market.

The Upcoming Economic Summit

The warning comes ahead of the 32nd Nigerian Economic Summit scheduled for October 26 and 27, 2026, in Abuja.

The summit is themed "Growth that Works: Delivering Jobs, Productivity and Shared Prosperity."

Its framework includes five major tracks: Work Nigeria, Produce Nigeria, Invest Nigeria, Secure Nigeria and Scale Nigeria.

The Produce Nigeria track focuses specifically on productivity, investment, industrialisation and value creation.

The official summit framework asks how Nigeria can make it cheaper and more efficient to produce in the country.

It also identifies manufacturing, agro-processing and energy as areas requiring investment and stronger value chains.

That agenda closely mirrors the challenges identified in the latest manufacturing warning.

From Reform To Results

The wider economic debate in Nigeria has increasingly shifted from announcing reforms to measuring their results.

Exchange-rate reforms, fuel-subsidy removal and banking-sector reforms have changed the economic environment.

But reforms themselves are not the final objective.

The ultimate objective is a stronger economy in which businesses can produce competitively and citizens can find productive work.

The official summit framework makes this distinction clear, describing the next stage as a move from stabilisation toward investment, productivity and jobs-led growth.

Manufacturing sits directly within that transition.

If the sector expands, Nigeria can produce more locally, reduce some import dependence, create jobs and develop stronger domestic supply chains.

If it continues to decline relative to the wider economy, Nigeria could remain dependent on imported finished goods despite possessing the resources needed to manufacture them.

What Success Would Look Like

Success in Nigerian manufacturing should not be measured only by the number of factories.

A successful industrial strategy would produce several measurable outcomes.

Factory capacity utilisation should rise.

Private investment should increase.

Manufacturing jobs should expand.

The domestic share of industrial inputs should increase where competitive.

Non-oil exports should grow.

Post-harvest losses should fall.

Productivity should improve.

Energy costs per unit of output should decline.

Access to long-term finance should increase.

And Nigerian products should become more competitive in African and international markets.

These indicators would provide a clearer picture of whether industrial policy is working.

The Importance Of Implementation

Nigeria has produced numerous industrial strategies over the years.

The challenge has often been implementation.

Policies can fail when institutions lack coordination, when funding is unavailable or when governments change direction before programmes have time to produce results.

The latest NESG warning therefore places emphasis on coordinated action.

It is not enough to announce an industrial policy.

There must be clear responsibilities, measurable targets and mechanisms for monitoring progress.

Businesses also need to know what government expects and what support will actually be available.

A Chance To Rebuild Industrial Capacity

Despite the challenges, Nigeria still has major advantages.

The country has a huge domestic market.

It has abundant agricultural resources.

It has significant mineral resources.

It has a large workforce.

It has entrepreneurs across almost every sector.

It has a growing technology ecosystem.

And it sits in a strategically important position within the African market.

These advantages create the foundation for industrial expansion.

The challenge is converting them into productive capacity.

That requires infrastructure, capital, skills, technology and consistent policy.

The Consumer Market Is A Major Asset

Nigeria's population of more than 220 million people represents a huge potential market.

A manufacturer that succeeds in Nigeria has access to one of Africa's largest consumer bases.

That market can justify investment in factories that might not be viable in smaller economies.

But a large population only becomes an economic advantage when consumers have purchasing power.

If households struggle with high living costs, demand for manufactured products can weaken.

This is another reason productivity and income growth matter.

The manufacturing sector needs consumers who can afford its products.

At the same time, consumers need competitive manufacturers that can provide quality products at reasonable prices.

Manufacturing And Shared Prosperity

Industrialisation can contribute to shared prosperity when the benefits spread across different parts of society.

Factory workers receive wages.

Farmers receive markets.

Small businesses receive contracts.

Governments receive taxes.

Consumers receive products.

Investors receive returns.

Communities receive infrastructure and economic opportunities.

That is the type of interconnected growth Nigeria needs.

But it does not happen automatically.

Industrial projects must be integrated into local economies.

Workers need decent conditions.

Businesses need to source responsibly.

Government needs to monitor environmental and social impacts.

And local communities need to benefit from economic activity.

The Risk Of Doing Nothing

The alternative is continued dependence on imported products.

Nigeria would remain exposed to international supply disruptions.

Foreign exchange would continue to be required to pay for imported manufactured goods.

Local manufacturers would struggle to expand.

Employment opportunities would remain limited.

Agricultural producers could continue receiving relatively low returns for raw commodities.

The economy would remain vulnerable to external shocks.

This is why the manufacturing debate is more than a business-sector concern.

It is a national development issue.

Conclusion

The Nigerian Economic Summit Group's latest warning has placed manufacturing back at the centre of Nigeria's economic debate.

The group says the sector's declining share of GDP reflects deeper structural problems, including high energy costs, import competition, inadequate financing, weak infrastructure, poor coordination and insufficient investment in productive sectors.

Nigeria's continued pattern of exporting raw materials while importing finished goods has limited the amount of value the country captures from its natural resources and agricultural production.

The challenge is not simply to build more factories.

Nigeria needs an industrial ecosystem in which manufacturers can obtain reliable electricity, affordable long-term finance, skilled workers, efficient transportation, predictable regulations and access to domestic and international markets.

Agriculture offers an especially important opportunity.

With post-harvest losses estimated at between 30 and 40 per cent for many commodities, stronger agro-processing could simultaneously reduce waste, improve farmer incomes, create manufacturing employment and reduce dependence on imported food and industrial products.

The country's youthful population makes the issue even more urgent.

With millions of people entering the labour market every year, Nigeria needs sectors capable of absorbing workers at scale.

Manufacturing, agro-processing, construction and small businesses can play that role if their operating environment improves.

The upcoming 32nd Nigerian Economic Summit is expected to provide a major platform for debating how to achieve that transformation.

Its official "Produce Nigeria" agenda is focused on productivity, industrialisation, investment and value creation, while the wider summit framework links production with jobs, investment, security and geographically distributed growth.

For Nigeria, the central question is no longer whether the country has enough resources to industrialise.

It is whether the country can create the conditions that allow those resources to be transformed into competitive products, profitable businesses and productive jobs.

The answer will depend on what happens beyond policy announcements.

Factories need power.

Investors need confidence.

Businesses need affordable finance.

Workers need relevant skills.

Farmers need reliable markets.

Manufacturers need protection from unfair competition without being shielded from legitimate market competition.

Ports and roads need to function efficiently.

Regulations need to be predictable.

And industrial policies need to survive long enough to produce measurable results.

If these conditions are addressed, Nigeria's large population and resource base could become powerful engines of industrial growth.

If they remain unresolved, the country risks continuing the cycle of exporting raw materials, importing finished products and watching potential manufacturing jobs move elsewhere.

The latest warning from the economic group therefore represents more than another complaint about the cost of doing business.

It is a reminder that Nigeria's next phase of economic development will be determined by its ability to produce more, produce efficiently and retain more value within the country.

For manufacturers, policymakers, investors and millions of Nigerians looking for better jobs and higher incomes, the stakes are considerable.

Nigeria has the market.

It has the resources.

It has the entrepreneurs.

What remains is building the productive system capable of turning those advantages into sustained industrial prosperity.