BY AKINWALE ABOLUWADE, IBADAN
Rise in rate of dollar against the naira, scarcity of foreign exchange and a global shortage of raw materials have been adduced as reasons for the rise in prices of commodities in the country.
Valiyaparambil Sudarsan, General Manager, Sumal Groups, said this in an interview at the sideline of the Sumal Groups’ Customers’ Forum held at the Kakanfo Conference Centre, Ring Road, Ibadan, Oyo State, recently.
Sudarsan, who attributed the continued survival of industries in Nigeria to resilience, called for the birth favorable policies to aid the economy.
“Our main problem and our pre-coronavirus pandemic situation are in the fact that globally, there has been shortage of raw materials, hence, we are not getting enough (raw materials). We are not getting raw materials locally to produce. This, you know, is essential for production.
“Cost of production is higher; shipping or importation of materials required for production is not easy to shoulder. The shipping lines increased the cost of their services.”
It is very demanding to continue production in this crisis time.
“You can see dollar scarcity in Nigeria also. The dollar is going up every time against the naira and this has a lot of implications on manufacturing. This leads to increase in prices of commodities.
“Government is trying its best, but we need further push so that manufacturers can be able to cope with the pressure.”
The company’s customers at the event urged the management to evolve means of making their products readily available to meet the increasing demands of consumers.
