We have 5 car manufacturing/Assemble plants in Nigeria and 2 that can assemble good and durable buses:-Innosson and Annamco. Why is the lagos government importing BRT buses? This is why Nigeria is not growing. Fashola should be protested about this.

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=67685:unity-banks-facility-for-brt-buses-hits-n9811m-&catid=31:business&Itemid=562



THE Managing Director of Unity Bank Plc, Mr. Ado Wanka recently said that the bank had financed the purchase of BRT buses to the tune of $6.3 million (N981.1 million).

Wanka said this during the celebration of Unity Bank Day at the ongoing 2011 Lagos Trade fair.

He said that the bank also provided another N215 million to ensure the buses were cleared from the port, registered, kitted and have parking spaces.
According to him, “in this way the bank was participating in the Lagos State Government’s efforts to make Lagos a Mega City.”

“Let me remind us of peculiar challenges of transportation in Lagos. Simply put, movement in Lagos can be tricky.

“That is why Unity Bank financed the purchase of 100 42 seater buses by HFZ Transport Services at a cost of $6, 330,000.

“Moreover, to ensure port clearance, proper vehicle registration, kitting and provision of parking spaces for the buses we also provided a further financial outlay of N251, 000,000.

“In this way, we are participating in the steps being taken by the administration of Governor Babatunde Fashola to reshape Lagos into a model city of the 21st century,” he said.

Wanka said that the bank would continue to partner with the government to transform Lagos positively, adding that that was demonstrated by its participation in collection of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

He said that the bank had 36 branches in Lagos and 18 in Kaduna parading latest Information Technology infrastructure, adding that that underscored the importance, which the bank attached to Lagos.

He said that the bank was the first to implement the Oracle 11g on Banks’ Application Software.

The managing director said that the bank’s latest products included Unity BetA, Unity PAYS, and Unity Holy Trip.

He added that Unity BetA, empowered small business and entrepreneurs to grow their businesses while Unity PAYS, provided customer opportunity to buy valuable assets like generator sets and machines.

He also said that Unity Holy Trip, provided opportunity for customer to save for pilgrimage and features BTA allowance and 50 per cent credit facility.

The President of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr. Femi Deru, commended the bank for having over 5, 000 people in its employment.

He said that this made them the largest employer of labour, adding that they should keep it up and work hard to meet its quest of being the highest capitalised bank in 2016.

Presumably it was cheaper to import from abroad. Thus, no real surprise that LSG wouldn't buy Nigerian vehicles.

ekt_bear:

Presumably it was cheaper to import from abroad. Thus, no real surprise that LSG wouldn't buy Nigerian vehicles.

Nope the made in Nigeria is cheaper

also even if it is more expensive, would it not get cheaper the more people patronize them ?

I doubt it is cheaper. Otherwise nobody would be begging Lagos gov't to patronize.

Anyway, let them do their own thing, manage their spending as they like

The Government should increase its tax on foreign-built vehicles; this measure is necessary to defend the Nigerian vehicles manufacturing industry and create more jobs.

^^^Exactly, That's the sort of thing China did to break out  from dependence on foreign nations. But you almost  have to be a dictatorship, like China, to push through such an 'unpopular' measure. Maybe that explains the west's fervent support for third world 'democracy' The fact that radical change is hard to effect under democratic conditions?

Using import bans/high duties to fix the problem of lack of competitiveness is like someone using a band-aid for a machete wound.

The more important thing is to get electricity working so that your products are attractive price-wise and industries can compete.

Not even clear how useful any of this import bans, high import duties will be with the very porous Nigerian borders.

Imported textiles like lace was banned in the 70s to protect local manufacturers, but decades later,  the same local manufacturers are either gone or struggling to survive.

Ban as much as you want, nothing is going to change  until other supporting infrastructures are like power and transportation, including corruption sef are taken care of,

Jonathan said from 2012 ,He warned that his administration would no longer tolerate the mass importation of any item which the country has the capacity to produce, since it would stall the development and transformation he has promised Nigerians, adding that locally produced rice was richer in content than th3 imported ones,


even rice as well,

lol @ Jonathan said, Simon said nko?

It doesn't really matter what GEJ says. Stronger forces than him or even Nigeria are at play here.

Nigerian borders are porous. So he and whoever else can ban whatever they like, smugglers will find a way to bring it in.

The only way to attack this issue is to increase the quality of Nigerian goods and/or decrease the cost. In a nutshell, raise competitiveness of naija-made products.

Maybe the quality of the Nigerian assembled buses are different/lower than what the Lagos State Govt. wants, or the contractor has to go for the foreign buses to increase his 'change'.

globalisation

Have the local car industries created enough awareness about their products to the LSG and other SGs, convincing them why it's more efficient buying locally?

These nigerian auto firms need to take their branding and marketing skills more seriously or else they'll soon be out of business.

Whether the buses are good quality or not, the states have made their decision

slap1:

Maybe the quality of the Nigerian assembled buses are different/lower than what the Lagos State Govt. wants, or the contractor has to go for the foreign buses to increase his 'change'.

I dont think those BRT buses are that quality. They are very fragile and deteriorate in no time, even the safety standards on them are non-existent. I've been inside them a couple of times.

I cant really say much about the Innoson buses since I've never been in one, probably they are same of the same or worst. I wish folks in Enugu where they are been used can attest to their utility.

Nigeria Car Industry

I almost choked when I saw that headline,

Lets go through some facts, PAN (Peugeot Automobile of Nigeria) sells a BRAND NEW 406 N3.4m (over £13k) this is a model that Peugeot has stopped producing since 2003/04 its ok for them sending the parts to Nigeria for them to put together or assemble. a 2002 406 down would go for around £500-£700. its companies like PAN who forced people to start looking abroad,

I remember hearing dat d salvaged BRT would be replaced by d company on negotiation.
I dont think d Nja coys are into dat.

Because the officials in charge of the deal will make more money dubiously buying abroad than home made. Coupled with lack of patriotism and foresights among nigerians who doesnt see anything good in making the indigenous ventures flourish.

Because the officials in charge of the deal will make more money dubiously buying abroad than home made

And tell me whats home made?

Home made/assembled vehicles,clothes,shoes,food like rice,name it,even toothpick.

redsun:

Because the officials in charge of the deal will make more money dubiously buying abroad than home made. Coupled with lack of patriotism and foresights among nigerians who doesnt see anything good in making the indigenous ventures flourish.

on point.

why cant we leave the makers of homemade products like vehicles alone to market their goods to the government themselves? why force a government to patronize a good not properly marketed.

[img]http://3.bp..com/-zWBlt7WzVi4/TqMIf9dNrII/AAAAAAAAe48/bxWjT3POvEY/s1600/nnewi.jpg[/img]
Innoson 6125 masstransit bus produced in Nigeria

The government,all arms should be compulsorily made to buy made in nigeria goods whenever they ar available.

Home made/assembled vehicles,clothes,shoes,food like rice,name it,even toothpick.

Assemled vehicles are a fraud!!!!

Why complain when they could get it cheaper from China?

This 9ja sef.

We will keep killing ourselves all in d name of greed and selfishness called corruption.

Instead of empowering our local industries, we will prefer to import - even toothpicks.

What makes u think if GEJ increases taxes and encourages local industries, the local industries wont become involved in PPP's and invest money in our power sector?

What makes u think they produce inferior goods? We lack belief in ourselves and support anything that is foreign weda its quality or not.

Thats y MTN will say pay 1500 and get 200mb for a month and silly Nigerians will be happy and patronize them. Mnwhile Glo's package is 100 times better.

Our problem is like i always say OURSELVES! We need to change our orientation and fast too.

It is not always about price. It is about spinning something that will last for ever,about putting the money back in the system instead of china,about setting precedences and know-how that will come on a platter for future generations of africans,generations that will not be alienated from the world of mechanics and regeneration like the present generation.

Igwe-1:

We have 5 car manufacturing/Assemble plants in Nigeria and 2 that can assemble good and durable buses:-Innosson and Annamco. Why is the lagos government importing BRT buses? This is why Nigeria is not growing. Fashola should be protested about this.

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=67685:unity-banks-facility-for-brt-buses-hits-n9811m-&catid=31:business&Itemid=562



THE Managing Director of Unity Bank Plc, Mr. Ado Wanka recently said that the bank had financed the purchase of BRT buses to the tune of $6.3 million (N981.1 million).

Wanka said this during the celebration of Unity Bank Day at the ongoing 2011 Lagos Trade fair.

He said that the bank also provided another N215 million to ensure the buses were cleared from the port, registered, kitted and have parking spaces.
According to him, “in this way the bank was participating in the Lagos State Government’s efforts to make Lagos a Mega City.”

“Let me remind us of peculiar challenges of transportation in Lagos. Simply put, movement in Lagos can be tricky.

“That is why Unity Bank financed the purchase of 100 42 seater buses by HFZ Transport Services at a cost of $6, 330,000.

“Moreover, to ensure port clearance, proper vehicle registration, kitting and provision of parking spaces for the buses we also provided a further financial outlay of N251, 000,000.

“In this way, we are participating in the steps being taken by the administration of Governor Babatunde Fashola to reshape Lagos into a model city of the 21st century,” he said.

Wanka said that the bank would continue to partner with the government to transform Lagos positively, adding that that was demonstrated by its participation in collection of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

He said that the bank had 36 branches in Lagos and 18 in Kaduna parading latest Information Technology infrastructure, adding that that underscored the importance, which the bank attached to Lagos.

He said that the bank was the first to implement the Oracle 11g on Banks’ Application Software.

The managing director said that the bank’s latest products included Unity BetA, Unity PAYS, and Unity Holy Trip.

He added that Unity BetA, empowered small business and entrepreneurs to grow their businesses while Unity PAYS, provided customer opportunity to buy valuable assets like generator sets and machines.

He also said that Unity Holy Trip, provided opportunity for customer to save for pilgrimage and features BTA allowance and 50 per cent credit facility.

The President of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr. Femi Deru, commended the bank for having over 5, 000 people in its employment.

He said that this made them the largest employer of labour, adding that they should keep it up and work hard to meet its quest of being the highest capitalised bank in 2016.

VON Automobiles To Launch Made-In-Nigeria Buses

The management of VON Automobiles Nigeria Limited, owners of rejuvenated VWoN (Volkswagen of Nigeria) assembly plant in Lagos has announced plans to roll out the first batch of locally built Ashok Leyland brand of commuter buses in December 2011, with a promise to assist Nigeria in her quest for rapid socio-economic transformation.

•Ashok Leyland bus.
Mr. Tokunbo Aromolaran, Managing Director, VON Automobiles Nigeria Limited last week made this declaration in Lagos, when a team of auditors from the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) visited the plant to assess the extent of work. The plant, which has been moribund for over 15 years is currently being rejuvenated and retooled with modern assembly lines to produce the modified Ashok.
The director described the automobile industry as a critical sector that requires fundamental approach, and urged the federal government to support local production and review import tariff polices in favour of vehicle assembly plants, because of their impact on the country’s economy.
While also recalling that the company inherited mere carcass of the moribund Volkswagen plant, Mr. Aromolaran said: “We have since August 2011 been working round the clock to revamp the decrepit remains of the company to elevate its status to the desired standard for a bus assembly.”
He said the resuscitated plant has attained 75 per cent completion and would be ready in few weeks to roll out the first batch of made-in-Nigeria Ashok Leyland commercial vehicles from completely knockdown components. He added that the company’s marketing team has commenced upbeat marketing strategies to exploit markets in the Economic Community of West African States to boost capacity utilization of the Lagos-based plant.
VON Automobiles has installed capacity for 1,000 buses annually and is capable of providing job opportunities for various technicians and artisans. The management of the plant has already commenced talks with local content producers to supply locally made components in a scheduled phase substitution of imported components from Ashok Leyland India, the plant director affirmed.

http://pmnewsnigeria.com/2011/11/17/von-automobiles-to-launch-made-in-nigeria-buses/

I were to be in Innoson MD/CEO shoes this is what I would do.

Ask Lagos State and Enugu Govt to allow my company add 3-5 buses to their fleet at no cost.

After 6 months watch what will happen.

So long as the buses stand the test of time the rest is history,

BTW: Banning importation of items does not encourage competition instead creating enabling environment to compete with other brands/products.

I told a group of graduating students recently that if there is conducive atmosphere for investment in Nigeria (Power, Good transportation network etc.) vertical companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google would beg Nigerian govt to build factories in Nigeria.

elomi:

I were to be in Innoson MD/CEO shoes this is what I would do.

Ask Lagos State and Enugu Govt to allow my company add 3-5 buses to their fleet at no cost.

After 6 months watch what will happen.

So long as the buses stand the test of time the rest is history,

That is what VWoN (Volkswagen of Nigeria) is planing to do next year.

Instead of empowering our local industries, we will prefer to import - even toothpicks.

Look I could remember in the 80's when they ban the importation of wheat! the day Nigeria started growing their own wheat, that was the day the price of Bread, Biscuit, Beer, Cake etc started shooting upwards at a rapid rate.

The Ban of rice led us to be eating those rice that has stones in it,