NIGERIA'S APPETITE FOR FOREIGN GOODS- THE WAY OUT.

There are no short cuts to ending or restructuring the now very visible and threatening Nigerian appetite for foreign goods.
Decades ago it was an expression of so called class culture. In the era, Nigerians wore Italian shoes and clothes, drank imported wines and partook in much more just to showed he or she belonged to a class that can afford to. Meanwhile, even manufacturers imported inputs.
Then it graduated into the average Nigerians taste for cheap second hand clothes, second cars; and foodstuffs like rice that were in short supply locally or are relatively costly.
Then we had the more recent officially sponsored appetite for imported fuel and due to disenabling environment, decline in local manufacture especially as evidenced by close down of vehicle Assembly lines; tyre manufacturing factories, textile factories and the like.
Now Nigeria has hit the bottom. The oil boom has finally hit all time low and so, the Central Bank of Nigeria has been doing all it could to hold foreign reserves steady and more importantly allocate the little still trickling in, better.
However, these are very temporary forex management measures. Nigeria has to find a way to reduce the nations appetite for foreign goods or boost forex inflow or both.
None of these can be done with a short term plan. All raised eyes so far have always been directed towards hopes for inflow increase through solid minerals development and exports outside oil and gas. Not enough attention is yet paid to the issue of always growing appetite for foreign goods, including, of course, manufacturing inputs for machines still humming away in spite of the times.
Perhaps, this is because it is the most difficult of the options available. In theory all that is required is attitudinal change but this is not exactly correct. Much more is required from top to bottom to cross this bridge. Yet if not crossed, any boost in inflow will always only offer temporary relief because of the still growing population.
Yet, the road out of the mess lies also how Nigeria got into the mess. Aside from appetite for second hand goods, all else are driven by inadequate technology within; little or no incentives for backward or forward integration, as appropriate and lack of political will to bite bullets.
The ultimate key lies with technology. Today Nigerians buy foreign cars, foreign handsets and computers, foreign consumer goods because the craze is on worldwide for latest editions. Of course, countries who cannot catch up continue to be the perpetual importers.
Here in Nigeria, majority of those that still manufacture continue to do so based on forex gobbling franchise agreements; using equally forex draining imported raw materials while the non manufacturers concentrate on importing any thing that can be imported.
The way out? Give clear incentives and mutually agreed deadlines for existing manufacturers to integrate backward or forward, place ban on or make it increasingly expensive to import any consumer item that is produced or can be produced within short run outlook and find ways to encourage and reward innovation especially in areas that have potential to replace imports soonest.