The federal government has set up a committee that would investigate the remote and immediate causes of the collapse of the privatised paper mills in the country with a view to finding lasting solutions for their revitalisation.
This was disclosed yesterday in
The theme of the workshop was: "Challenges, Prospects and Raw Materials Demand in the Printing, Packaging and Publishing Industry."
Bakare, who was represented by an Assistant Director,
He said: "The federal government, through the FMITI, is currently working towards the resuscitation and strategic development of the sector by setting up an Inter-Agency Committee (IAC), which was mandated to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the collapse of the privatised paper mills and find lasting solutions for their revitalisation with a view to coming up with a sector specific policy.
"The government is optimistic that with the implementation of the sectoral policy, the pulp and paper industry will be repositioned to be one of the foremost sectors to drive the economic recovery of the nation thereby creating massive employment opportunities and revenue generation along all its extensive value chains."
The Director General of the RMRDC, Professor
The other companies that were privatised were the
Ibrahim, who was represented by a Director at RMRDC, Mr. Ogunwusi Abimbola Adesanya, said the effect of these deficiencies were reflected in import trade figures for paper, paperboard and art paper.
He said: "According to COMTRADE database on international trade (2022),
"Hope is still far from the horizon as the remnant of surviving local paper manufacturers are still contending with issues of obsolete and vandalised equipment, inability to access funds and monumentally dilapidated public infrastructure."
The keynote speaker during the workshop, Prof.
He said: "A kilogram of oil will cost
The President of the LCCI, Dr. Michael Oluwale-Cole, in his welcome address, noted that according to the
Oluwale-Cole said: "The country export of N1.3 billion during the same period implies that huge scarce foreign exchange is being expended on importation of materials that could be produced locally."
The Chairperson of Pulp Paper and
She said: "The industry without doubt is grappling with lots of challenges, which affect the smooth running of the day-to-day activities of the sector.
"To begin with is the high cost of paper; in which various factors come into play to influence the increment of paper prices. Such factors include electricity supply and fuel cost, paper mill closures, and also increased demands for tissue papers at home shifted production priorities."
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