Members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) have lamented huge losses being recorded as a result of scarcity and sliding rates of foreign exchange.
The chairman of Basic Metals, Iron and Steel Fabricated Metal Sectoral Group of MAN and the national council member of the union, Alhaji Kamoru Yusuf made this known when members of the Senior Course 47 2025 of the Armed Forces Staff and Command College, Jaji, led by Col. Usman Hashim Mohammed, visited KAM Holding Limited in Ilorin, Kwara State.
Yusuf who is also the group managing director of KAM Holding Ltd said manufacturers could not remit money for imported raw materials that had long been converted to finished goods and sold when the rate of foreign exchange was much lower than what it is now.
He, however, saluted the courage of President Bola Tinubu ‘s administration for initiating policies to save the naira, stem the tide of inflation and stabilise the economy, as well as tackle currency speculation, which had made the stability of the currency against the dollar very challenging.
Represented by the vice chairman of the company, Dr. Mrs. Iyadunni Yusuf, he expressed belief that with the help and assistance of government in the steel manufacturing sector, the sector and the country as a whole would be better off.
“It is our hope that your tour of our facility will further expose you to the numerous processes involved in the manufacturing of Iron and Steel Products and further build your confidence in the need to appraise our efforts in nation-building processes.
“As regards the theme of your visit, which is, ‘Harnessing Grassroots Intelligence for Enhanced Internal Security’, we all know that this encourages intelligence gathering through grassroots community engagement, as local intelligence can detect early signs of potential threats. Also, collaboration with local communities builds trust between citizens and security agencies.
Yusuf, who said that the indigenous organisation, owned had grown over the years, added that one of the motivating factors for the growth of the company is to reduce the level of unemployment.
In his remarks, the team lead of
the Senior Course 47 2025 of the Armed Forces Staff and Command College, Jaji, Col. Mohammed, said that the purpose of the environmental visit to Kwara State was because of security challenges in the country, which he said made the College to update its curriculum to include visiting some selected states in the federation.