₦airaland Forum

^^^^^ There is no denying of the fact that there are barriers to entry, some of which you've itemized. I wholeheartedly agree that a critical success factor in establishing manufacturing plants in Nigeria is to make electricity work and cheaply available (through deregulation), so that small businessmen with $500k-1 million or so in capital can take advantage of the cheap labor in Nigeria as you stated.

I simply do not agree with the notion that manufacturing plants cannot become competitive in naija given the current power situation. I believe workarounds can be found to make factories succeed in Nigeria today, and successful factories do exist.

Did you know that as at 1980, the textile industry in the country, for example, could boast of over 175 textile factories? This sector brought in about $1.3 billion yearly for the country and employed more than 250,000 workers? The major textile enterprises in Nigeria were located around Lagos which had the majority of the country's spinning mills and weaving mills. Other significant textile operations were located around Kano and Kaduna. Between 70% and 80% of the raw materials used in the industry were sourced locally.

My point is, these factories thrived without uninterruptible power supply and they can be resurrected with good leadership and government support. We don't have to wait until the power problem is completely solved to do this.

Has Dr Chukwuemeka Ezeife and his team seized control of PDP machinery? Does his team plan to install the next Chairman of the PDP BOT to replace OBJ and ensure that he will fully support an Igbo presidential candidate?

I ask these questions because I believe that the party where Igbo Presidential aspirant has the best chance of actually becoming the party's flag bearer is the PDP. The chances there are not very good at the moment.

[quote author=ekt_bear]Has nothing to do with bigotry or hatred of a region. Your proposal simply isn't realistic. I wouldn't advocate it for mine either..[/quote]I respect your position though I disagree with it. Please tell us how you would address the issues I raised, if you have any realistic proposal. Here they are issues once more. (Its OK to say, you don't have an alternative proposal to mine which you believe is unworkable)

We have a large cotton belt but import textiles from China (thus keeping their subsidized factories open and jobs in china).


We are the world's number one producer of cassava but import cassava starch from Europe.

We have a huge tomato belt in Kadawa, Jigawa and Chad Basin but are the world's largest importer of tomato paste - from China and Italy.


We can produce rice but we import rice from Thailand and India-most of it from grain reserves that have been in stock for over 5 years.

unbelievable! Its all about bigotry and hatred of a particular region afterall. I could have sworn the head was not empty. lwkmd

^^^^ True to form. I said I do not expect him to comment on the issues

https://s3.amazonaws.com/rapgenius/i-told-you-so1.jpg

[quote author=ekt_bear]Overall, your best bet is to think things through a bit more deeply....your analysis is too simple and unrealistic.[/quote]ekt_bear, it suffices to say that I disagree with you on this matter.

I am however interested in your suggestions of how to address the issues below. Saying that the issues cannot be resolved without uninterruptible power supply is lazy and unimaginative. I am convinced that you can come up with ideas that could work while we try to solve the power problem. Please do not feel compelled to proffer any solution if you don't have ideas.

Here are the issues once again, what are your thoughts on addressing them other than, maintaing the status quo:

We have a large cotton belt but import textiles from China (thus keeping their subsidized factories open and jobs in china).


We are the world's number one producer of cassava but import cassava starch from Europe.

We have a huge tomato belt in Kadawa, Jigawa and Chad Basin but are the world's largest importer of tomato paste - from China and Italy.


We can produce rice but we import rice from Thailand and India-most of it from grain reserves that have been in stock for over 5 years.

Beaf: Chei! What an entertaining day today is turning out to be! You ask people for proof and they start going orange with madness.
Sir, where are your examples of any power plants that are run from gas storage tanks?


NONE?

Funny stuff!

Your lame attempt at shifting focus off GEJ regarding the issues being discussed here has failed woefully, even your gullible followers can see that. I will post the issues once again in case you are as blind as a bat and didn't see it the last time. What are your thoughts on the issues? You may have your typical last word - your have been exposed once again, I know you don't like being humiliated so I will not embarrass you any further. I do not expect you to comment on the issues below, so breathe easily . dolo

We have a large cotton belt but import textiles from China (thus keeping their subsidized factories open and jobs in china).


We are the world's number one producer of cassava but import cassava starch from Europe.

We have a huge tomato belt in Kadawa, Jigawa and Chad Basin but are the world's largest importer of tomato paste - from China and Italy.


We can produce rice but we import rice from Thailand and India-most of it from grain reserves that have been in stock for over 5 years.

What are GEJ's plans to address these issues? Inquiring minds wanna know.

Beaf: Mr wise man, do you have examples of powerplants that run off stored gas?
Maybe the Americans were stupid afterall to have built the gas pipleline at great cost across Alaskan wastelands or the Europeans are daft enough to pump gas all the way from Russia to parts like France, Germany, the UK etc. Who knows?

--Beaf lights a cigar, hangs feet on arm of chair. Cognac on ice. Waits for comedy to commence.--

I repeat, you are a fool and very ignorant. Gas used by power plants are not piped to the plants from the source of the gas. The gas companies for the most part have huge storage facilities from where the gas is piped (short distance) to end users. We are talking about a similar process where the smaller storage facility is owned by the company in question. The gas will then be piped to the plant from the said tanks.

Once again, your attempt to change the topic has failed woefully. Let me remind you of the main issues raised in this thread - I welcome your positive contribution, and thanks in advance:

We have a large cotton belt but import textiles from China (thus keeping their subsidized factories open and jobs in china).


We are the world's number one producer of cassava but import cassava starch from Europe.

We have a huge tomato belt in Kadawa, Jigawa and Chad Basin but are the world's largest importer of tomato paste - from China and Italy.


We can produce rice but we import rice from Thailand and India-most of it from grain reserves that have been in stock for over 5 years.

What are GEJ's plans to address these issues? Inquiring minds wanna know.

Beaf: Sir, this is just as funny as calling Nigeria a rich country. Gas storage tanks for power plants? Lol!

You are a fool sir. Many such plants exist in remote locations in the USA and they do generate their own power and send the rest to the transmission grid. And yes, they use storage tanks for gas used to fire the plants. Many of the storage tanks are underground. olodo

Read about underground storage tanks here, what I'm talking about will be a miniaturized version of theses.

[quote author=tpia@]but seriously, why are non-yorubas so much into the affairs of osun state in particular and yorubas in general?

have we been sold out again?[/quote]Non yorubas are Nigerians. The affairs of Osun state and Yorubas in general are the affairs of Nigerians. abi you are from Ghana ni?

Beaf: Mr counterfeit Igbo man from Jigawa; abeg, wait for your mugu's, they will soon pour in.

Why do you feel threatened by Aregbesola?

The more I read about this Aregbesola, the more I see him as a very aggressive and focused guy. On the other hand, if he indeed believes in secession, like Dede1 and other olotes, I will join the Feds to deal with him.

Beaf, Stop trying to make ndu_chucks the issue of the thread. If Aregbe destabilizes your senses that much, stay away from threads that discuss him. (I bet you can't do that)

[quote author=ekt_bear]And how does the bolded affect the price per kWh of electricity in Nigeria versus a place where gas is moved via pipeline?

Like I said, your analysis is too simple..


Source?[/quote]Malam ekt_bear, I'm afraid you are over analyzing the issue. You seem to erroneously believe that no industrial activity can be successful in Nigeria until we completely solve the problem of electricity. Let me simply remind you that in the USA where you reside, you can find Gari, Poundo Yam, and several packaged goods from Nigeria even without uninterruptible power supply.

As far as subsidies go, just google tomato subsidies and you'll find that the EU, USA, and other countries including China, subsidize that industry. Have you never heard of farm subsidies in the USA?

Beaf: I no fit laf! NL's counterfeit Igbo man has been "researching!"

When you don't have any cogent point to make, you turn to jesting. We can see through your antics.

One would have expected you to support this idea of Regional Integration which in a way, may move us towards federalism - a system which you purportedly champion.

Didn't you start a thread weeks ago informing us of some SS regional economic summit? Stop this childishness of being a rebel with only a single cause. mumu

I decided to do a bit of research as to why Aregbesola has been in the news in recent days and why Aregbe, as he is popularly called, is under attack by the federal government and the ruling party.

Aregbe's life is threatened, according to ACN, as news reports of Aregbe's support of a potential Islamic extremist group spreads.

My research reveals a very surprising reasons why Aregbe is under attack.

(1)He is calling for "Regional Integration" where all of the south west act as a single political and economic entity.

(2)He wants all state governments in the SW to adopt his plan for regional integration and establish Ministries for Regional Integration.

(3)In this new integrated SW, Lagos will be the economic nerve center.

Problem:

(1)This regional integration will succeed if a single political party controls all of the SW.

(2)Aregbe's plans is really the ACN plan for the region and a very popular one.

(3)PDP must become irrelevant in the SW for the plan to work

This is the koko of the matter. If PDP does not find a way to discredit Aregbe by accusing him of being a separatist or Islamist, ACN and Aregbe may very well succeed in kicking PDP out of the SW.

We are watching the developments.

hmmm. There is no smoke without fire. What does the federal government know and when did they know it? If the accusations are true, the President should have signed an executive order to have Aregbesola arrested, abi this is a witch hunt ni?

[quote author=ekt_bear]So you plan on liquidifying/compressing it, and transport it that way?

Have you looked into whether those additional costs (liquidifying, transporting by road) make the energy source cost-effective? Keep in mind that you are competing against others abroad who don't have to deal with these issues..

This is more than vision/leadership.

Major tasks that need to be handled, not trivial ones...

Having gas is different from having it available for power generation.[/quote]The issues you are raising are actually quite simple to resolve with the right leadership and support from the government. Gas is already transported via trucks and rail to depots around the country where retailers make their purchases. We just do not have underground pipelines to get the gas to homes like they do abroad. There is no reason why companies cannot store enough gas for their activities and use them to generate their own power. Excess capacity can then be put into the power grid for good money.

The companies who sell these canned tomatoes to us, are currently subsidized by their own governments (China is a big example) so any governmental assistance in these ventures should be encouraged. Imaging the multiplier effect and potentially hundreds of thousands of jobs that can be created from this. If we want to subsidize any industry, Agric should be on the top of the list.

It will take aggressive leadership to make it work but I have to admit that such leadership is currently unavailable to us. Lets hope GEJ's handlers are thinking about this avenue

Dede1: Let it be known to you that Nigeria can not and will not achieve an iota of what you have imagined with two international airports and one deep water seaport. You have attempted to dramatize daydreams induced by malaria.

I agree with you that international airports and seaports must be part of the equation, but the support of all Nigerians, devoid of tribalism and separatism are critical success factors. Join us.

Eko Ile: fcukkkkk you and your worthless president.

abi dis one is a gutter boy from mushin, ni?

One would have thought by now, you people would have become civilized enough to be respectful to your President. Eko Ile, you will soon fall my hand.

[quote author=Rhino.5dm]Bloody blood sucking boko haram goat. By the way, when are we expecting the next bomb blast? Terrorist![/quote]Boko haram??

Why are you so bitter, what's wrong? Don't you know that it takes less energy to be cheerful and enjoy the forum?

[quote author=ekt_bear]Where do you get the gas from to power these factories? Where do you intend on locating them?

What do you do about the FG restriction that evidently prevents the private sector from generating more than 1 MW w/o a license?[/quote]We have plenty of natural gas, we even export it.

Its a simple matter to use moderate size storage tanks, on location, to keep the gas available since pipeline networks are not fully operational. All the problems or potential road blocks you are identifying, are not insurmountable. The vision and leadership is what is lacking.

Have you people no shame, carrying on a cat fight like heart broken biatches for over 2 days from one thread to the other.

Y'all should shut da heck up already. Carry the nonsense da heck out of here. Bitter and shameless cocoons. SMH

WTF

Those law enforcement officials must be prosecuted for abusing this lady. They threatened to shoot her legs, cut her up, and humiliated her. Who made them police, judge, jury, and prosecutors at the same time?

She was probably transporting the guns for one of the police officers in a rival gang to that of the officers who are abusing her. How in the world did they know that their were guns in the gari? SMH

This is an outrage.

[quote author=ekt_bear]Well if the choice is:

a) Throw $1 billion down the toilet on something that will probably yield absolutely nothing (Chad basin exploration)
b) almost anything else


Then you choose (b). But typically things aren't as cut and dry as this. Notice btw pretty much everyone on that other thread saw that Chad basin exploration=419.

However, you still have to show that your agric proposal is one of the strongest alternative uses of the cash.

Why for example is spending money on tomato paste factories with no cheap electricity to power them a good idea? Etc, etc.

You need to think things through a bit more, imo[/quote]Great point on electricity. The way to resolve the electricity issue would be for these factories to generate their own electricity and sell excess power into the grid. There are relatively inexpensive gas fired plants which can be purchased for this. The plants will pay for itself in a short time given the amount of tomato paste consumed in Nigeria. Ghana alone spent over $30million importing tomato paste in 2007. There is ready market for the product.

Better spent on Agric in the area

[quote author=ekt_bear]Your idea of a tomato paste factory is good.

But again, how do you plan on powering this factory?[/quote]BTW, let me make some clarifications: What I am opposed to is the $1billion the Feds plan For Inland Oil/Gas Exploration In The Chad Basin And Other Areas. Read More about it here

A large portion of $500 million can be used to address the related electricity issues for these factories.

@shymmex, thanks for posting that link

[quote author=ekt_bear]More to the point...if you plan on leaving poverty through agric, then you'd better also find a way to reduce the population of the country to 5 million people or something, lol.

Long story short, if agric is the only idea you have for escaping poverty, prepare to remain a third world nation for the next several hundred years...

Industrialization is the answer, not really agric.

Agric is a game for rich folks anyways, not the poor masses (at least if they want to really make a killing from it)[/quote]Come on! No one is saying that agric is the only idea for escaping poverty. Agric is an area of opportunity that is not getting enough attention. Population control cannot be ignored as well.

[quote author=ekt_bear]I don't think there are any real quick wins.

Nothing good comes easy...anyone expecting Nigeria to be turned around in a day is fooling themselves.

So what is your argument for why the $1 billion spent oil exploration is a bad idea?

What would you do with the money, if it were you?

Speaking of which...who is spending the money? Nigeria or the oil companies? To my knowledge, typically it is the latter who spends money on exploration..[/quote]When I say quick wins, I am speaking in relative terms. I believe half of that $1 billion would generate positive results if spent on the Agric sector (specifically Tomato production and tomato paste factories) quicker than what the same amount would generate in exploratory activities which are not guaranteed to yield any positive results.

Once again, we are the worlds largest importer of tomato paste for goodness sake. We have a ready market for the product, we have the land to produce the tomatoes - why not agressively go after the quick win?

[quote author=ekt_bear]Lmao at "slowly getting it."

The question is, how does one turn a poor country into a wealthier one? How does one create wealth?[/quote]Indeed, this is the conversation I am hoping the thread would encourage.

As I stated, GEJ can command some very quick wins in the area of Agriculture itemized earlier. The $1 Billion slated to be spent on oil exploration this year alone is ill advised - half of that should be used towards the Agric sector.

Very good. People are slowly getting it.

The title of the thread implicitly questions the notion that Nigeria is rich. Subsequent posts point out some of the reasons for poverty in Nigeria and itemize some problems that could be solved relatively quickly.

Please note that the title is not, "Since Nigeria is very rich, why are Nigerians so poor?"

Beaf: My broda, you are slowly turning "Musiwaic" and having a conversation with yourself.
Abeg, go and rest. You are tired and your battery is weak.

Would you happen to know what GEJ's plans are for the following problems? There is nothing st.upid about the problems. I'd be surprised if you don't agree that these issues can be resolved rather quickly with good leadership. I know you get bent out of shape when you think GEJ is being criticized, but you should know that some criticisms are constructive.

I'm not here to pick a fight buddy.

We have a large cotton belt but import textiles from China (thus keeping their subsidized factories open and jobs in china).


We are the world's number one producer of cassava but import cassava starch from Europe.

We have a huge tomato belt in Kadawa, Jigawa and Chad Basin but are the world's largest importer of tomato paste - from China and Italy.


We can produce rice but we import rice from Thailand and India-most of it from grain reserves that have been in stock for over 5 years.

Insha Allah, our visionary leader shall emerge.