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Importance of Transportation Infrastructure in a Manufacturing Economy
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Cletus Olebune
courtesy of nel-mag.org
Transportation Infrastructures (roads, rail, airports and seaports) are the arteries for the free flow of people, goods and information; three things necessary in a manufacturing and export economy.
If the eyes are the light to human soul, then the airports and seaports are the eyes that international business travelers see a country with. How important these transportation infrastructures are to the manufacturing economy is as good as anybody can guess. But that will not stop me from talking about it.
The domestic need for transportation infrastructure brings with it the possibility to become an important link in the regional transportation system in the movement of goods manufactured in the rural areas (where most manufacturing facilities should be located anyway). There is a need to revive waterways and railway transportation, the age-long neglect of these transportation infrastructures cannot continue, if Nigeria wants to become a manufacturing economy. A country cannot become a manufacturing giant without well-connected inner perimeter roads linking airports, seaports and railroad stations.
Government cannot possibly do all these without the involvement of private entrepreneurs in the building of transportation infrastructures, such as the management of airports, railroads, seaports, and state collection of tolls for the maintenance of perimeter roads and highways. For Nigeria to reach the goal of becoming a manufacturing economy in 2020 (what we at Nigerian Entrepreneurial Leadership call 24-Hour economy) the country must attend to the glaring and urgent need of using water and rail means of transport to reduce pressure on the road system and boost productive activities and employment countrywide, especially in the rural areas.
The neglect of rail and waterways for decades has contributed to the nation’s dependence on food importation, as agricultural produce from one part of the country cannot be transported cheaply to other parts. Lack of cheap means of transportation has discouraged many farmers whose harvests perished because they could not access the market. Also, the nation has continued to record the same socio-economic loss from the failure to expand railway network to all the states, so that agricultural produce could be moved cheaply to urban markets. Rural development proclamation will just be that, proclamation, unless transportation infrastructure network is build to encourage free flow of people and goods.
More disappointing is the inability to maintain the existing north-south colonial rail track for the movement of goods. This is major reason for the amalgamation of the north and the south by the Colonial masters for their easy management of movement of goods. Nigerians should debate more on the economic manufacturing necessity of the north and south axes, as well as the east-west axes; rather than the political undertone. Consequently, the decline in rural economic activities is largely responsible for high rates of joblessness, crime and declining quality of life, as the urban areas become overpopulated resulting in environment problems, such as over-flow of garbage, lack of proper drainage system.
The Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) monopoly law should be abrogated and a regulatory framework set up to guide private investments in the rail transportation infrastructure. The lack of interest, and failure to provide incentives, might have discouraged the private sector from investing in rail and water transportation. Because of the importance of this sector in a manufacturing economy, a form of enterprise fund should be created with the purpose of promoting private sector development in the rail and water transportation.
For a long period, rural Nigerians have been cut out from the urban markets and the global markets. It is time to put this piece of the mosaic back for the accomplishment of vision 2020 – manufacturing economy.
International business travelers must agree that Airport security and foreign investment go hand in hand. Travel is a basic necessity for business to be conducted between countries, while symbolizing a deeper connection that is fundamental to a country’s economic future. Aviation is the travel mode of the world; the first and last impression is your airport. Foreign investment is going to come from people who fly. It is vital, if Nigeria is going to become a manufacturing export economy that encourages businesspeople to come in. With recent incidents at our airports, businesspeople will doubt whether Nigeria’s airports and airspace can attain international standards. These recent mishaps give a bad impression not only of Nigeria’s airports, but also of Nigeria as a whole, and the lack of structural management system. The bottom line is that if you can’t get there, you can’t trade. Improving airport security is so critical for international trade. To attract travelers and commercial shippers, air travel to Nigeria must be safe and secure.
This article is not meant to provide solutions to the ailing transportation infrastructure, as to modernization of equipment types, and types of industry management training, but to raise awareness of the importance of the transportation industry in a manufacturing economy. Solutions as to the current industry problems in equipment and training is left to the consultants, who after a critical study, diagnosis, and analysis of the sector’s current situation will be in a better position to provide positive result oriented solutions. Any seemly solutions to the problems presented in this article are peripheral, as we do not give free in-depth solutions in our articles.
What I have tried to do here is to call attention to what has been left in the back burner, which we at Nigerian Entrepreneurial Leadership think is critical to the accomplishment of manufacturing economy.
As always, we have a network of individuals and consultants experienced in the development and management of port authorities that meet global standards. This is not limited to seaports, and airports; but bridges and tolls.
February 2006, Nel-m.org.
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Together we can build a nation where its economic strength is comparable to its individual citizen's capabilities. A 2020 Nigeria economy where manufacturing is the driving force. We are always glad to hear from you.
ABOUT
THE AUTHOR: Cletus E. Olebunne, Is the Executive Director of Nigerian Entrepreneurial Leadership (www.nel-m.org ) An accomplished scientist, and entrepreneur in the global healthcare product distribution. He is the founder of Eastern Pharmaceuticals (www.easternpharmaceuticals.com), a global distributor of healthcare products based in New Jersey. An active member of Regulatory Affairs Professional Society (RAPS), the global pharmaceutical regulatory body, the American Chemical Society, and the American Management Association
(AMA). He focuses on Entrepreneurship – general management and organizational development
The NEL organization seeks to:
1 Support and promote a community of entrepreneurs
2 Promote public understanding of manufacturing entrepreneurship
3 Promote and enhance the role models that reflect the ideals of manufacturing entrepreneurship
4 Be the source for information about best practices in business leadership.
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