LAPAN’s call to ban raw hides’ export

Worried over the massive export of hides and skins that is stifling the growth of the Nigerian leather industry, the Leather and Allied Products Manufacturers Association of Nigeria [LAPAN] has called for the return of institutional controls. Chairman of LAPAN Mustapha Nabegu made the call at the First National Summit on Hides and Skins Value […]

Worried over the massive export of hides and skins that is stifling the growth of the Nigerian leather industry, the Leather and Allied Products Manufacturers Association of Nigeria [LAPAN] has called for the return of institutional controls. Chairman of LAPAN Mustapha Nabegu made the call at the First National Summit on Hides and Skins Value Chain organized by Inclusive-Synergy Limited in Abuja.

In order to address the decline in the industry, the association said there is the need for Federal and State governments to address the issue of capital mismatch between genuine livestock farmers and money-bags who are only interested in exporting raw materials out of the country without regards to value creation.

Long-term neglect of the leather products industry in favour of oil production has left Nigeria behind in competing for a global market and the full utilization of hides and skins potentials. The absence of leather industries in Nigeria is a major setback to the quest for socioeconomic development of the country. large scale production of hides and skins in Nigeria calls for value addition to the raw hides and skins in order to improve their quality and durability.

Nigeria exports hides and skins to Europe, South Asia, East Asia and Pacific nations through the general methods of processing hides and skins to leather. However, processing of hides and skin to ponmo for consumption in Nigeria is also a huge problem. Statistics indicate that Nigeria is losing out among countries competing for the 75-billion-dollar global leather industry because of ponmo consumption.

The main actors that play specific roles in the processing and marketing of hides and skins are the butchers, hides and skins wholesalers (dealers), the tanners, the ponmo wholesalers and the leather wholesalers and retailers. 

Nigeria has the best quality leather, especially those from Kano. which can survive hard use and variation of weather conditions. In Onitsha manufacturers have the skills but lack machinery to work on leather and improve it to a very refined standard that will match the imported materials. Kano tanneries prefer to export their leather because they enjoy government’s Export Expansion Grant (EEG) which, though presently being reviewed, gives them more benefit than selling to indigenous manufacturers.

Also, Nigeria must stick to some improvement programmes for its local industries and strongly implement the ban on exportation of wet blue leather to improve local production and income generation. Tanners are supposed to be at the end of the value chain and each step of the value chain plays a significant role in our economy employing millions, providing food and earning the country foreign exchange. 

Federal Government should reactivate transparent business policies, for example by giving soft loans to stakeholders through cooperatives wishing to set-up functional tanneries. Once this is done, there should be a ban on import of leather works to safe-guard these budding industries and also government should ban export of raw hides. A ban on the product could make leather products cheaper, which will create job opportunities in polishing of leather work.

 While the Nigeria Export Promotion Council [NEPC] report says the export of leather products like bags, shoes were 63 million dollars in 2014, government still lacks statistics on the consumption of some items in the country. There is therefore the need to get the statistics of the consumption of ponmo in comparison with the current volume of leather production and exports in the country. The leather tanning sector has made remarkable progress in recent years as it has progressed from export of raw and wet blue leather to finished leather. Therefore, the formal leather goods sector must be revived particularly to supply the domestic, regional and international markets.

Government should create sound, consistent, supportive and transparent policies that will revive leather goods industries in Nigeria and leather goods businesses must develop procedures to ensure developed markets where products are compliant with environmental and social responsibility requirements as well as international standards.