President Muhammadu Buhari has directed immediate inauguration of a special committee to look into the revival of cotton and textile industry. The cotton, textile and garments industries across the country have become “shadows of themselves” due to influx of cheap textile materials, inconsistent government policies and dumping of sub-standard textile materials in the country.

Speaking on the need to revive cotton, textile and garments industry in Nigeria, he noted that the industry had hitherto over 400,000 employees, adding that due to the deplorable state of textile and garments industry, the number of its employees has significantly reduced to about 30,000.

The UNTH in Kaduna, textile industries in Aba and Kano, alone employed over 400,000 Nigerians but today, only about 30,000 workers are working in all these textile industries.

Nigerian textile industry has the potential to compete with the best in the world, adding that President Buhari-led administration was irrevocably committed to ensuring substantial growth in high quality cotton production to feed textile and garment industry, thereby bringing back a flourishing textile and garments industry.

The President knowing that lot of money is spent importing garments and concerned on the need to create jobs and add value, gave the charge to set up this committee.

Apart from this committee, other committees raised by the Permanent Secretary include the Committee on Operationalisation of Federal Government Storage Facilities, Committee on Strategic Action Plan for the Development of Grazing Reserves and Stock Routes nationwide as well as the Committee on the Revitalisation of Agricultural Extension Services in Nigeria