Textile workers on Wednesday in Kaduna raised the alarm that the industry was on the brinks of complete collapse.
The National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN) declared in Kaduna that textile companies had dropped from about 120 in the 1970s to 25 now.
Issa Aremu, the general secretary of the union, made the feelings of the workers known in an interview while reviewing the performance of the industry in 2008.
Aremu attributed the collapse of thetextile industry to high cost of production, smuggling, inconsistent government policies and lack of political will.
Others causes, he said, were near absence of functional basic amenities and infrastructure, Naira devaluation as well as insecurity. He also cited the rising cost of HPFO(black oil) and AGO (diesel), coupled with the dumping of smuggled goods in the country.
“Not less than 100 factories have closed shop between 1979 and datewith tens of thousands of job cuts.
“For example, more than 2,500 workers lost their jobs in 2008 alone due to factory closures, redundancies, retrenchment and indirect job losses.
“This development has further increased unemployment, income poverty, deepened mass poverty, destitution and desperationin respective textile communitiesthroughout the country,’’ Aremu said.
While noting that manufacturers’contributions to the country’s economicgrowth was less than three percent, Aremu suggested a pragmatic approach to redress the situation.
Jan292009