This was related by Professor Franklin Ngwu, Director of the Public Sector Initiative at Lagos Business School, at a recent conference in South Africa.
Speaking during an interview with Arise News on Tuesday, Ngwu disclosed that discussions at a recent conference in South Africa revealed a sobering assessment of Nigeria’s industrial standing.
He said participants examining the global transition into the Fourth Industrial Revolution concluded that Nigeria is still struggling to lay the foundations of the First Industrial Revolution.
Ngwu described the finding as deeply troubling, noting that industrialization remains central to sustainable economic growth, job creation, and poverty reduction.
He argued that Nigeria’s failure to establish a solid industrial base has limited its ability to absorb its growing labour force and benefit from global technological advancements.
According to him, the absence of a clear and coordinated industrial policy has left the country dependent on imports and vulnerable to external shocks, while manufacturing continues to contribute minimally to national output.
He warned that without deliberate investment in industrial capacity, skills development, and production-linked infrastructure, Nigeria risks being permanently locked out of the global value chain.
The Lagos Business School don stressed that the industrial gap also explains why economic reforms have struggled to translate into tangible improvements in living standards, urging policymakers to shift focus from political maneuvering to governance-driven economic planning.
He added that prioritising industrial development is no longer optional, warning that Nigeria’s long-term competitiveness and social stability depend on urgently kickstarting an industrial revolution that the country has yet to begin.
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