Raheem Akingbolu
As stakeholders in the manufacturing sector intensify efforts to push more Nigerian products beyond the shore of the country, the Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC), has identified poor packaging and labelling as major stumbling blocks to Nigeria’s products exported overseas, especially the United States (US).
The Director, Business Development at NEPC, Mr. Wiliam Eze, who delivered a keynote address at the 2019 Packaging, Plastics, Food Processing, Labelling and Print Exhibition in West Africa in Lagos, said some Made-in-Nigeria products are faced with poor packaging which results in rejection. The exhibition was organised by Propak West Africa.
According to him, a recent report revealed that 30 per cent of Nigeria’s exports to the US are rejected as a result of poor packaging and labelling, not quality of the products.
He added: “Packaging has been in the forefront of product development as well as marketing efforts. Packaging and branding have been critical marketing tools both in domestic and export market. “This has underlined the reason manufacturers, producers, Medium and Small Micro Enterprises (MSMEs) attend this event, we are in consumerism era, where consumers determine the market trend; otherwise known as consumer marketing. It has however heightened the rise in social media and internet marketing.”
While speaking on why Nigeria has always found it tough to meet global standard in this regard, Eze reiterated that the problem of packaging in Nigeria today was complex, because innovation keeps on changing due to the changing consumer demand and behaviour.
“We must also follow the business squarely as SMEs or producers. Some made in Nigeria products are faced with poor packaging which results in rejection. “A recent report says that 30 percent of our exports to US are rejected as a result of poor packaging and labelling, not quality of the products.
“In order words, we have to see this exhibition to be very key to our SMEs, producers and entrepreneurs. The topic of the exhibition Environmental Sustainability is a critical theme in our country and globally. The supply value chain must be able to meet the demand for the products,” he added.
Also speaking at the event, the Regional Director, Afrocet Montegomery, the parent company to Propak, George Pearson, said being the election year in Nigeria, business environment has been lulled in 2019 with flat overall growth.
He stated that recent report indicated modest growth in the manufacturing sector. This, he said, is represented in Propak’s remarkable growth which has seen a 30 percent year on year increase for three years running.
