NIP 2025 Signals Shift Toward Production-Led Growth – PAMA President

The President of the Pan-African Manufacturers Association (PAMA), Mr Mansur Ahmed, says the recently launched Nigeria Industrial Policy 2025 (NIP 2025) signals a shift toward production-led economic growth.

Ahmed stated this in the PAMA monthly policy bulletin on Sunday in

It was reported that the policy, launched on Feb. 17 in Abuja, was presented by Vice President Kashim Shettima on behalf of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The framework includes a commitment by the Federal Government to allocate up to five per cent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annually to industrial financing.

The five-year roadmap (2025–2030) aims to shift Nigeria from a consumption-driven economy to a production-driven and export-oriented economy.

Among its targets is increasing the manufacturing sector’s contribution to GDP to 15 per cent by 2030 and 25 per cent by 2035.

Ahmed described the commitment, referred to as the “Five-Per-Cent Signal,” as a significant step for the manufacturing sector if effectively implemented.

According to him, the initiative represents a policy shift in Nigeria’s industrialisation agenda by placing manufacturing and production at the centre of economic planning.

He said it reflected years of advocacy by manufacturers and industrial stakeholders for a coordinated and adequately funded industrial strategy.

“At its core, the policy acknowledges that countries industrialise through deliberate policy choices,” he said.

Ahmed noted that the framework aims to revive dormant factories, expand exports and generate employment while positioning manufacturing as a key component of economic resilience.

He said the proposed financing commitment could help lower the cost of capital for manufacturers and support long-term industrial investments that have historically been limited in Nigeria.

Ahmed said the policy also focuses on lowering structural production and trade costs by addressing constraints such as energy supply challenges, logistics inefficiencies, port congestion and regulatory overlaps.

He added that the strategy’s emphasis on agro-processing, renewable energy, mining and manufacturing clusters reflects an approach centred on integrated value-chain development.

Ahmed said the policy could also strengthen Nigeria’s participation in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) by expanding opportunities for manufacturers beyond the domestic market.

However, he noted that the success of the framework would depend on effective implementation.

“Policy design has rarely been Nigeria’s central challenge; execution discipline has,” he said.

Ahmed said industrial policy should avoid protectionist measures that undermine productivity and financing arrangements that lack performance accountability.

He added that the framework signals a shift in expectations between government and industry, with manufacturers expected to expand production capacity, deepen local value addition and create employment.

Ahmed said the long-term impact of the policy would depend on its ability to translate commitments into measurable industrial outcomes and strengthen Nigeria’s role in Africa’s industrial development.