Nigeria’s local automaker Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) said the revision of the import levy on cars from 30 percent to five percent by the Federal Government has taken a toll on its business plan.
According to the Chairman of PAN, Aliyu Ahmed Wadada said the automaker had a fantastic business plan that was negatively hit by the government’s policy on the importation of vehicles.
“The policy is the reduction of levy on imported vehicles by government from 35 percent to five percent, which is a disincentive to the local assembly plants.
“Before that, the policy that was in place was that 40 percent duty and 30 percent levy. When you put the two together you will have 70 percent, which is very high. The essence of making it that high is to discourage importation so as to encourage the local assembly plants to thrive,” Wadada said.
The chairman of PAN stated that reduction only helped to open the corridors for the importation of fully built automobiles at the expense of locally assembled cars.
“Ironically, government is so desirous and committed to providing employment to the citizens of this country. But how do you provide employment by diminishing the fortunes of your real sector that is manufacturing?
“Again, we are seeing and feeling the impact of the Naira’s depreciation at the foreign exchange market as a result of the continuous depletion of Nigeria’s foreign reserve due to our reliance on importation,” he said.
Wadada, however, disclosed that PAN has started to diversify its product offering. “By the end of July this year, all things being equal, we shall be launching another brand called Cherry.
“This is to make vehicles available to the average Nigerian employee either in the public or private sector so that owning a car would not be a luxury but a necessity,” he said.
