By Seun Ibiyemi
The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has cautioned against the Senate’s resolution seeking a ban on textile fabric imports, warning that the proposal could undermine millions of jobs, disrupt key industries and fail to revive Nigeria’s struggling textile sector.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Chief Executive Officer of CPPE, Dr. Muda Yusuf, said although the objective of revitalising the country’s textile industry was commendable, imposing an outright ban on textile imports would have unintended economic consequences.
According to Yusuf, the proposal overlooks the wider value chain that depends on imported textile fabrics, including the fashion, garment-making, tailoring, furniture and interior design industries.
He estimated that Nigeria’s fashion, garment and tailoring industry is worth about ₦10 trillion and provides livelihoods for approximately 10 million Nigerians, making it one of the country’s largest creative economy sectors.
Yusuf explained that textile fabrics serve as critical raw materials for the industry, noting that restricting imports would increase production costs, reduce consumer choice and threaten thousands of micro, small and medium enterprises engaged in garment production and fashion design.
He added that the furniture and interior design industry, valued at an estimated ₦7 trillion, also relies heavily on textile fabrics for upholstered furniture, office furniture, hotel furnishings and mattresses, warning that supply disruptions would weaken the sector’s competitiveness.
The CPPE chief argued that the decline of Nigeria’s textile industry was driven more by structural challenges than import competition.
He identified high energy costs, poor infrastructure, expensive financing, logistics bottlenecks, obsolete technology, smuggling, inadequate access to long-term finance and inconsistent government policies as the major constraints facing local manufacturers.
According to him, imported textile fabrics already attract combined Import Duty and Import Adjustment Tax of between 35 and 45 per cent, but these protections have not restored the industry’s competitiveness because production costs remain high.
He further noted that local textile manufacturers currently lack the capacity to meet the quantity, quality and variety of fabrics required by Nigeria’s growing garment and furniture industries, adding that an import ban would likely create shortages and raise production costs.
To achieve sustainable growth in the textile industry, Yusuf called for a comprehensive value-chain strategy centred on improving competitiveness rather than restricting imports.
He urged the government to prioritise the revival of cotton production through improved seedlings, mechanisation, enhanced security for farming communities and guaranteed off-take arrangements.
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The CPPE also recommended the establishment of a Textile Competitiveness Fund financed through textile-related import tax revenues to support technology upgrades and provide manufacturers with single-digit financing.
Other recommendations include strengthening border enforcement to curb smuggling, reducing energy and financing costs, improving infrastructure and requiring government institutions such as the military, paramilitary agencies and schools to prioritise locally produced textiles and garments for uniforms.
Yusuf maintained that the proposed import ban could encourage smuggling, reduce customs revenue and weaken industries that currently generate far more employment than textile manufacturing itself.
“The challenge confronting Nigeria’s textile industry is fundamentally one of competitiveness rather than import penetration,” he said, stressing that structural reforms remain the most sustainable path to reviving the sector.
