Founder of B. Adedipe Associates Limited, Dr Biodun Adedipe, has revealed that the Chinese, Indians and Lebanese have been taking advantage of the new manufacturing window in Nigeria.

Adedipe said this on Friday during the Nigeria Economic Outlook for 2024 organised by First Bank of Nigeria Holding, themed, ‘Current Realities and Prospects’.

The economist stated that post covid, there had been a shift in the manufacturing sector in the globe which has seen manufacturers relocating their factories to the countries they are exporting to.

He said, “Nigeria is a good environment for business. Globally, the pattern shift in trade in the last three years is that most of the companies producing and exporting are now shifting their manufacturing activities to the countries they export to. The question is who are those taking advantage of this new manufacturing window? Far mostly, the Chinese, the Indians and the Lebanese. Those are our findings. Each time I see that, I ask myself, ‘What are the Nigerians with the capacity to invest in manufacturing doing?’

Speaking further, Adedipe highlighted Nigeria’s population and the opportunities there, saying, “The population is not only large, it is youthful and also tech-savvy. That means we need to ask how it connects to the ICT sector, which has consistently in the last four to six years been the number 1 or 2 major contributor to the GDP. The question is, how do we deal with that as business people?

“What it says simply is that internet penetration in Nigeria is at 11th spot in the world and 94 per cent access the internet via their phones. This means that in whatever industry you are in, we have entered an era where technology becomes the key.