GODWIN Emefiele, Governor of the Central Bank on Thursday under the directives of the presidency revealed that military uniforms among other clothing for government workers would henceforth be produced in Nigeria.
The meeting in Abuja discussed the enforcement of Executive Order 003 signed by President Muhammadu Buhari, mandating all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to source their textile needs locally in an effort to revive the country’s Cotton, Textiles and Garment (CTG) sector.
Emefiele said full compliance with the order would help in curbing the pressure on foreign reserves through demands for forex for the importation of textile and clothing materials.
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“It has the capacity to transform Nigeria’s rural economy and revive the textile and garment industries by creating over two million jobs, improve internal revenue across three tiers of government, and reduce $4 billion import bill incurred annually on textile and apparel.
“Our model in achieving this presidential directive is to facilitate long term contracts five years or more with our textile and garment factories to produce uniforms for our armed forces and uniform services using local fabrics and textile materials.
“We have the mandate of Mr President to ensure that all uniformed services and theatre wears in hospitals and medical facilities be sourced locally from the Nigerian CTG sector,” said the CBN governor.
To ensure the enforcement of the Presidential Order, he said the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) has been notified to enforce compliance among MDAs as the CBN will work out payment terms that fit budget releases for uniforms for various organisations.