President of the Association of Nigerian Tyre Marketers (ANTM), owners of Africa Tyre Village (ATV), Lagos International trade Fair complex on Badagry Expressway, Alhaji Issah Akanbi, speaking on Channels TV Live Interview
The President of the Association of Nigerian Tyre Marketers (ANTM), owners of Africa Tyre Village (ATV), Lagos International trade Fair complex on Badagry Expressway, Alhaji Issah Akanbi has once again, called on the Federal Government to provide attractive industrial policies that will encourage both local and international investors to invest into Tyre and accessories manufacturing in the country.
Speaking in a live interview programme, Business Morning on Channels TV on Friday, December 20, 2024, Alhaji Akanbi averred that his association had over the years made every possible efforts to partner with willing investors both local and international to build a tyre manufacturing in the country, but due to harsh government policies towards industries, the efforts are yet to yield fruits.
He said the current cost of new tyres will definitely drop immediately local production starts, but willing investors are not being encouraged by prevailing industrial policies of the Federal Government.
Looking into upcoming 2025 from the experience of 2024, he predicted good business environment if the government can come up with investment encouraging policies regarding taxation, forex, import duties and other costs.
He revealed that it takes well over N12m to clear a container of tyres at the Nigerian ports, saying the high rate of import duties remains a major cause of high costs of new tyres in Nigeria.
He therefore called on the government to come up with business encouraging policies in order to revive ailing businesses and further boost local production of tyres.
Alhai Akanbi recalled that it was due to harsh industrial climate that hitherto major tyre manufacturing firms like Michelin and Dunlop to exit Nigeria and relocate to economies like Ghana and other West Coast countries.
In his submission, “We Nigerian business leaders and investors are willing and ready to grow the economy by investing in production, but we need government encouragements in 2025 and beyond to do so.”
