MAN President advocates Artificial Intelligence as game changer for manufacturing sector in 2025
President of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Otunba Francis Meshioye, said that the Association operated in a more deplorable economic environment in 2024 with the inflation in Nigeria reaching an alarming 34.6 per cent by November 2024, while diminishing consumers’ purchasing power causing a decline in demand for manufactured goods.
Meshioye made this remark in his address at the 2025 edition of the MAN Media Personality Of The Year Award/Presidential Media Luncheon in Lagos.
He advocated that among other recommendations by the association that the efficient adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be a game changer for the manufacturing sector in 2025 and the near future.
According to the President of MAN, this is expected to help in engendering enhanced production and productivity, improved capacity utilization, innovative product development, improved inventory system, efficient logistics operations etc.
“It is projected that technology adoption through research and development will fast-track the emergence of the much-awaited transformational growth of the real sector of the economy. And as manufacturers, we are gearing up and ready to embark on this interesting journey on the path of growth,” he added.
He explained that for the sector to regain its momentum, efforts to improve productivity and enhance competitiveness must be sustained as this is crucial in helping Nigerian manufacturers navigate the challenges they face.
“There is no gainsaying the fact that manufacturing is pivotal to galvanizing and sustaining the economic growth and development of Nigeria. We seek the government’s alignment with our conviction that a win for the manufacturing sector is a win for the economy and by extension, a better life for the citizenry,” he said.
Commenting on the exchange rate, he said the Naira is predicted to hover between ₦1500 and ₦1650 to 1 dollar in the first quarter of 2025, stressing that this projection assumes effective management of the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS) introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in November 2024, which, if properly implemented, could help stabilize the exchange rate.
Accordingly, he said that the outlook for the manufacturing sector in 2025 largely depends on the success of ongoing economic reforms, which include: the implementation of the proposed tax reforms, stabilization of critical macroeconomic indicators, and targeted investments in infrastructure and technology.