The Nigerian Institute of Production Management, NIPM, is organising a talk show to mark its annual general meeting.
The show is part of its bid to contribute to efforts at increasing performance and enhancing productivity in the manufacturing sector in the country.
The president and chairman of the governing council of the body, Dr. Olaniyi Opanuga, made this known in a press statement issued on Saturday.
He said the topic of this year’s national workshop and Annual General Meeting of NIPM is “Strategies for effective manufacturing, supply chain and logistics cost reduction.”
He said the topic was informed by the need for the Federal Government to address the issue of graduate unemployment caused by closure of industries relocating to other countries.
This is as he warned that the Federal Government must faithfully implement the industrial policy to encourage big industries to remain in the country and help cut cost and boost employment.
Said he: “Cost is not just a component of value, but it is also a chief determinant of competitiveness of organisations and the economic wellbeing of a nation. Cost is a Key PerformanceIindicator (KPI) in manufacturing companies globally.”
Opanuga stated that government’s industrial policies and micro-economic initiatives not directed at taming costs and boosting productivity would not help Consumer Price Index (CPI) and general inflation rate.
According to him, “the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will continue to tinker with its regulatory framework to no avail until production is given its rightful place in the country.”
Opanuga argued further that the need for strategic cost reduction by Nigerian manufacturers had become more pronounced in view of the need to achieve global, regional and local competitiveness, profitability and growth in the face of daunting challenges of the nation’s economic environment.
According to him, “Nigerian manufacturers are operating in a difficult and dicey business terrain given such factors as high cost of energy, multiple taxation, infrastructural deficit, high cost of borrowing, epileptic power supply, inadequate security, inflation, currency devaluation among other factors militating against industrialisation and price competitiveness of Made In Nigeria.”
“As professional production and operations management practitioners we are concerned about productivity, quality, safety and customer value for rapid industrial development and economic growth of the country,” he added.
He disclosed that “at this 2019 National Workshop and Annual General Meeting we are gathering to discuss ways and means by which companies’ CEOs and directors, managers and executives responsible for production, operations, supply chain and logistics can save costs for enhanced customer value and sustainable profitability and growth.”
The NIPM, he stated, was “looking at sustainability in terms of responsible manufacturing with consideration for safety and environmental protection, leveraging technology for continuous improvement, production of high quality and reliable products, excellent customer service, and the use of renewable energy resources. We are reviewing the trends and challenges regarding drivers of manufacturing, supply chain and logistics costs in organisations with a view to proffering solutions for better bottomline results. We are also cross learning and sharing knowledge on global best practices in an attempt to achieve greater efficiency and effectiveness of our industrial operations.”
He said the AGM was also informed by the belief that as a professional body that regulates the practice of production and operations management in the country, NIPM and its affiliated training institution, the College of Production And Operations Management, COPOM, wanted the Federal Government to tackle the hydra-headed issues of youth unemployment, insecurity ,poor infrastructure and inflation as a matter of urgency.
Still on tackling the problem of unemployment, the institute said it wanted the Federal Government to pursue the nation’s industrial policy with seriousness, adding that the “Nigerian business environment is uncertain and costly.”
According to it, the environment “stifles innovativeness and creativity; it discourages entrepreneurship and business start ups; it kills investment ideas; it cages effective industrial capacity utilization.”
It said it was absurd that companies like Dunlop Nigeria Plc and Michelin had relocated to Ghana where it said they were doing well while others were planning to leave or close down their factories in Nigeria.
Opanuga contended that it was the institute’s belief that the country should not be a dumping ground for foreign goods.
Rather, it said, the economic base should be diversified with manufacturing at the front burner, providing value added for exports and earning desired foreign exchange.
It said with the right industrial incentives and by creating an enabling business environment the government would be able to stabilise the nation’s balance of payment position.
