Key points
- The Federal Government is ramping up policy reforms to attract global investment into the nation’s automotive sector.
- Minister of State for Industry Sen. John Owan Enoh commissioned the Automotive Training Centre in Gusau, Zamfara.
- One hundred youth graduated from a specialized National Automotive Design and Development Council mechatronics training program.
- The beneficiaries were trained to repair petrol and Compressed Natural Gas-powered tricycles and motorcycles.
- The Federal Government has established training centers across all six geopolitical zones to expand local production capacity.
Main Story
The Federal Government has announced an intensification of policy reforms aimed at attracting global investments into Nigeria’s automotive industry.
The Minister of State for Industry, Sen. John Owan Enoh, disclosed this on Thursday in Gusau, Zamfara State, during the formal commissioning of the new Automotive Training Centre (ATC) and the graduation ceremony of 100 youth trained in advanced mechatronics.
The intensive training program was anchored by the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) in collaboration with the Zamfara office of the Made in Nigeria Special Project. Over the course of the program, the 100 youth beneficiaries acquired specialized technical skills required to repair and maintain both petrol and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)-powered tricycles and motorcycles within Zamfara.
Minister Enoh stated that the federal government has deepened its strategic engagements with international investors and top-tier automotive manufacturers to set up specialized industrial hubs and build out local manufacturing capacities. He noted that the establishment of functional ATCs across all six geopolitical zones is a deliberate strategy to guarantee uniform access to technical services and vocational training.
In his keynote address, Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal emphasized that rapid developments in mechatronics, electric mobility, alternative fuel systems, and smart diagnostics are fundamentally redefining global transportation infrastructure. Lawal recalled that within his first month of taking office in 2023, he personally visited the NADDC headquarters in Abuja to broker a partnership centered on equipping local youth with practical mechanical skills to directly combat poverty, joblessness, and regional insecurity.
The governor noted that establishing the mechatronics hub in Gusau aligns perfectly with the youth empowerment, industrialization, and clean energy mandates of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the Presidential CNG Initiative. While commending the NADDC leadership, the PADSON Group, and project facilitators for bringing the facility to fruition, Lawal urged the new graduates to leverage their industry-relevant competencies to stimulate economic prosperity across the state.
The Issues
- Securing long-term capital commitments from global automotive manufacturers to set up functional local assembly plants.
- Scaling up technical mechatronics training frameworks to cover electric vehicles and modern digital smart diagnostics.
- Ensuring steady supplies of tools and replacement parts for alternative fuel systems like CNG across regional training centers.
What’s Being Said
- Highlighting the broader industrial strategy, the Minister of State for Industry, Sen. John Owan Enoh noted that the federal government had intensified engagements with international investors and leading automotive manufacturers to establish automotive industrial hubs and expand local production capacity across Nigeria.
- Commending the technical execution of the project, Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal stated: “I express my profound appreciation to NADDC. Through its visionary leadership and commitment to skills development, the council has continued to position Nigeria to become one of the world’s leading automotive manufacturing nations.”
- Outlining his administrative vision for human capital development, Lawal added: “Within a month of assuming office in 2023, I visited NADDC in Abuja to seek collaboration on equipping youths with practical automotive skills. I believe empowering youths with employable skills is vital to tackling poverty, unemployment, and insecurity. I’m pleased this vision has materialised.”
What’s Next
- The 100 certified mechatronics graduates will deploy into the local artisanal transport market to service petrol and CNG tricycles.
- NADDC and the Made-in-Nigeria Project Office will monitor operational performance data from the newly commissioned Gusau hub.
- Ministry officials will advance bilateral talks with foreign automotive brands to finalize framework agreements for the planned regional industrial clusters.
Bottom Line
The Federal Government has launched a dual-track push for automotive self-reliance, driving policy reforms to court global manufacturers while collaborating with the NADDC and the Zamfara State Government to commission a mechatronics hub capable of transition-fitting local youth to manage petrol and CNG vehicles.
