The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, CPPE, has lamented the growing incidents of regulatory irritations and distractions inflicted on Nigerian manufacturers.
Muda Yusuf, the director of CPPE, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday.
The economic think tank group said there are multiple regulatory fees, levies, duplications, overlapping responsibilities, and regulatory repression in Nigeria.
Yusuf appealed to Nigerian regulatory agencies to exercise more discretion in carrying out their responsibilities.
He said: “The CPPE appeals to the regulatory agencies to exercise more discretion in the exercise of their powers and support the aspiration of the present administration to create an enabling environment for investment to boost domestic production, reduce import dependence, conserve foreign exchange and elevate investors’ confidence.
“This does not detract from the primary responsibilities of the agencies to protect consumers, ensure competition, promote standards and quality and protect the environment.
“But they do not have to suffocate investors to achieve this objective. Public pronouncements by some of the agencies had the unintended consequences of demarketing local brands, an action which is detrimental to the country’s aspiration to boost domestic production, grow investment, expand exports, earn foreign exchange and create jobs.
“The regulatory agencies should appreciate the context in which businesses in Nigeria are operating. The headwinds are profound and multifaceted, which is why many large companies declared huge losses in their latest financial results. Many have shut down; some have scaled down their operations, while several others have left the country.”
This comes amid the feud between Dangote Refinery and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission over crude supply.
DAILY POST recalls that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority made the controversial statement that Dangote Refinery’s petroleum products are inferior to imported ones.
Dangote Refinery: Don’t suffocate manufacturers, investors – CPPE advises regulatory agencies
