Skye Bank’s CEO advocates investment in manufacturing

Group Managing Director/CEO of Skye Bank Plc, Timothy Oguntayo, has called for massive investment in the manufacturing, agriculture and extractive industries for the success of the diversification program of the government.
He spoke during  a ‘Roundtable session on the Manufacturing outlook for 2016’ organised by the Dr. Biodun Adedipe led BAA Associates in Lagos.
Oguntayo, who was Lead panelist at the roundtable; said he has identified three sectors that are critical to the success of the economic diversification agenda of the government in view of the dwindling oil prices, low GDP growth, and rising unemployment in the country.
He said hitherto, the manufacturing sector contributed 10 per cent of Gross Domestic Product before the advent of oil boom of the 1970s, but lamented Nigeria’s overdependence on oil export and earnings from the 1990s to date.
He said the over dependence on oil resulted in the neglect of the manufacturing sector; just as low investment in public goods and infrastructure led to the decline in manufacturing activities.
To reverse the negative trend, he recommended the expansion of public infrastructure like road, electricity, among others to promote manufacturing. In addition, he advised manufacturers to access the earmarked N200 billion Central Bank of Nigeria and N200 billion Bank of Industry’s intervention funds to boost their operations.
Noting that commercial banks were not structured to provide long term funding but bridge finance, he said the Bank of Industry and NEXIM Bank should be strengthened to provide long term funding for manufacturers