- This event was organized by Solteque Nigeria Ltd
- Obasanjo appealed to the FG to revive the nation’s textile industries in order to make the raw materials for Adire production available for local manufacturers
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has urged the Federal Government to impose a ban on the importation of Chinese adire to safeguard the local adire market from potential dilution caused by Chinese imports.
He passionately implored the government to make every effort to protect domestic adire production and other locally manufacturable goods.
The elder statesman, during his opening speech at the ‘Canada Trade Mission ’24’ pre-conference session in Abeokuta, the state capital, expressed his concern that the materials for producing Adire, which were once sourced in Kano, Kaduna, and Ado-Ekiti, have become scarce.
This event was organized by Solteque Nigeria Ltd and featured guest speakers including Realtor Babatunde Adeyemo of the Pelican Valley and Mrs. Oluwatosin Oloko, Permanent Secretary of the Ogun State Ministry of Culture & Tourism, among others.
Obasanjo begged the government to do all her possible best to protect local production of adire from the imported Chinese adire and all other things that could be produced locally in the country.
The elder statesman who made the appeal in his opening speech on Monday in Abeokuta, the state capital at the ‘Canada Trade Mission ‘24’ pre conference session, lamented that the materials – clothes, for producing Adire that were hitherto sourced in Kano, Kaduna and Ado-Ekiti are not available anymore.
The programme was organised by Solteque Nigeria Ltd where Realtor Babatunde Adeyemo of the Pelican Valley and Mrs Oluwatosin Oloko, Permanent Secretary Ogun State Ministry of Culture & Tourism among others were also guest speakers.
Obasanjo therefore appealed to the FG to revive the nation’s textile industries in order to make the raw materials for Adire production available for local manufacturers.
He also made case for the establishment of formal training institution where people would learn how to produce Adire and be certified at the end of their learning period.
He said, “I want to appreciate the Traditional rulers who attend this event, you have shown that you are real custodians of Culture. People are saying China want to bastardise our Adire product, if not that we don’t value what we have. I want to commend Ogun State government for the initiative of Oja Itoku for Adire market. It is good but not good enough if we don’t have Adire sellers in the market.
“The clothes for the production of Adire is in Nigeria where they used to buy it in Kano, Kaduna and Ado-Ekiti but there is nothing like that anymore. If we want to produce Adire, where would we get the clothes to produce it? What we have to do is that, the Adire sellers, manufacturers and those who promote it, let us join our hands together. What government needs to do for us is not much. The first thing the government need to do for us is the revival of Textile industry, let us beg them to do that for us.”