Hike In Cement Price: Stop Giving Excuses – FG Tells Manufacturers, Threatens To Open Border

The federal government has threatened that it might open the borders to allow for cement importation if Nigerian cement manufacturers refuse to play ball on cement reduction in the country.

The government said some of the key components of producing building materials, especially cement, are locally sourced, adding that it considers the recurring disproportionate increase in the price of cement as unacceptable and unreasonable.

The declaration was made on Tuesday by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Arc. Ahmed Dangiwa, noting that the key input materials for cement production, such as limestone, clay, silica sand, and gypsum sourced within our borders, should not be dollar-rated.

Speaking in Abuja at an emergency meeting held with cement and building materials manufacturers, the minister said although it is aware of the macroeconomic challenges facing the country, the price of gas that manufacturers are using as an excuse should not be because gas is a raw material found within the country, and the excuse of an increase in mining equipment should not come up because equipment bought by these manufacturers has been used for decades and not just purchased every day.

The minister said the border was closed to the importation of cement to help local manufacturers, but if the government decides to open it back for mass importation, prices of cement would crash and local manufacturers would be gravely affected.

The minister, in response to the manufacturers, said: “The challenges you speak of, many countries are facing the same challenges and some even worse than that but as patriotic citizens, we have to rally around whenever there is a crisis to change the situation.

“The gas price you spoke of, we know that we produce gas in the country the only thing you can say is that maybe it is not enough. Even if you say about 50 percent of your production cost is spent on gas prices, we still produce gas in Nigeria; it’s just that some of the manufacturers take advantage of the situation. As for the mining equipment that you mentioned, you buy equipment, it takes years and you are still using it.

“The time you bought it maybe it was at a lower price, but because now the dollar is high, you are using it as an excuse. Honestly, we have to sit down and look at this critically. The demand and supply should be good for you because the government stopped the importation of cement. They stopped the importation to empower you to produce more.

“Otherwise, if the government opens the border for the mass importation of cement, the price would crash but you would have no business to do, and at the same time, the employment generation would go down. So these are the kinds of things you have to look at, the efforts of government in ensuring things go well.”