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The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria says its members are still battling multiple taxes and overregulation which have continued to create untold hardship for them in the country.
Specifically, the association hinted that 95 per cent of local manufacturers agreed that multiple taxes and levies and overregulation by government agencies dictated the economic environment in the second quarter of this year.
The association,in its Manufacturers Confidence Index for Q2 2021, manufacturers in the country were at the mercy of multiple regulation on a single manufacturing process occasioned by the agencies of the federal, state and local governments.
The association said:“Majority of respondent, 95 per cent, agreed that multiple and overregulation by government agencies have depressing effect on manufacturing productivity. Three per cent of respondents are not sure while the remaining two per cent simply disagreed”
It further observed challenges such as foreign exchange difficulties, unfriendly lending rates, discouraging government expenditure targeted at manufacturers, issues at the port and inefficiency in the backward integration agenda.
“With the Monetary Policy Rate standing currently at 11.5 per cent, there may not be credible reason the average lending rate to manufacturers by the banks is still as high 22 per cent as revealed by MAN survey of the sector,” it said,adding that 62 per cent of manufacturers reported that their cost of production increased and that cost of shipping also increased due to the COVID-19 pandemic impact.
The aggregate MCCI,it said, rose to 52.9 points from 49.1 points in the previous quarter, manifesting an improvement in the confidence of manufacturers in the economy.
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