BOI Partners Fidelity Bank, Ford Foundation on Aba Leather Cluster
Amby Uneze
Determined to promote Madein-Nigeria products capable of meeting international standards for both export and local consumption, the Bank of Industry (BOI) has provided the sum of N400 million to be made available quarterly for the benefit of over 300 members of the Leather Products Manufacturers Association of Abia State (LEPMAAS).
The funds would be disbursed through the Fidelity Bank Plc while the Ford Foundation would be providing other technical support. This was in line with the Governor of Abia State, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu’s determination to ensure that Made-in -Nigeria products through the Aba Finished Leather Manufacturers are marketed beyond the shores of the country. Welcoming stakeholders to the formal launch of the Aba Finished Goods Cluster Financing programme, the Managing Director of the BOI, Mr. Olukayode Pitan, noted that the programme was designed to provide a tailored bundle of financial and non-financial services including capacity building to qualified members of the LEPMAAS. According to him, the leather products which LEPMAAS remains a significant contributor accounts for 80 percent of the textile, apparel and footwear component of the manufacturing sector of the nations’ economy.
He added that the sector is a significant driver of job creation as it currently engages over 150,000 artisans to produce leather products sold both in the domestic market and to neighbouring West African countries. Pitan, pointed out that taking a cursory look at the Aba Cluster and the contributions of the members of LEPMAAS to the leather sector, informal computations put annual revenue from the cluster at over N10 billion despite the competing volumes of similar goods being imported. “It was this significant opportunity to substitute import volumes by supporting quality improvement of Made in Aba products, create additional jobs and improve the qualities of lives of the Artisans that led the Bank of Industry to design this tailored programme.