By KOLA OWOLABI
Hardly do you have a position out of the eleven players on the side of a team in a football game that doesn’t have the benefit of the ball at one time or the other in the course of a match. Even if a player does not struggle for the ball, a time will come that the ball will stray to his side and he will have a feel of the ball.
The recently unfolded economic policies of the current dispensation in Nigeria may be considered harsh and unfriendly, particularly to the masses of Nigeria. However, the ball of opportunity has been passed to some people and this is their time to make good money, if they can quickly capitalise on these opportunities. We are not talking of opportunities for those who are close to the people in power, these opportunities are for you and I who are in business for ourselves, businesses that can be started and grown to become a force to reckon with in the future.
We present three of these in this report.
1. Manufacturing that uses local content
Manufacturing of goods and products with the use of local raw materials is a business opportunity that will thrive under the current dispensation. The reason is obvious. The merging of the two windows of the exchange rate has seen the naira crashing by nearly a hundred percent. It means that manufacturers who were getting foreign exchange under the old dispensation at official rate have to pay double to access forex to use for importation of critical raw materials for manufacturing. This will lead to steep increase in the market price of their end products. What a disincentive for business. However, those who rely on local raw materials will not have to worry so much. Even if prices of local raw materials will go up, it won’t be as much as what we have seen happen to foreign sourced raw materials.
Good examples of manufacturing that involves mainly locally sourced raw materials (at least more than 50% of total raw materials used for a particular product) are shoes and bags and other fashion industry products that rely on locally raw materials such as leather, cotton and fabrics and others. Others are production of food products and beverages using local inputs like cocoa, coffee, corn, etc. There is also agric processing using our various agric produce and finally so many other light manufacturing activities using locally sourced raw materials.
2. Export
The huge devaluation of the naira has given Nigeria a big advantage in the area of export of goods from Nigeria. It means that goods going out of Nigeria are extremely cheap to people abroad. What a boom for those who want to go into exportation. From raw materials, to intermediate products and processed goods, the export market is now a gold mine.
3 People with skills that have international demand
This is the icing on the cake of business opportunities that will thrive under the current dispensation. For people who have skills in the digital platform space that can be sold to people abroad, this is your time. For those who have coding skills and ability to use AI (artificial intelligence) in a wide range of applications you have good opportunity to make good money. This is due to the high demand for these skills and the fact that they will be paying you in foreign exchange.
•Kola Owolabi:- (FIMC) Fellow of the Institute of Management Consultants, is the Principal Consultant and CEO of David Richard Associates, a company he founded in 1998. He is a Business Plan and Feasibility Study preparation expert and has been very active in the Business Development landscape in Nigeria in the past 23 years”. He was a leading consultant in many prominent business development projects in Nigeria, i.e., World Bank Growth and Employment Project (GEM) and YOUWIN Connect (Grading of Business Plans of Applicants). You can book a session with him to discuss how to translate into reality any business idea you have or any issue of concern in your present business. He can be reached on 08023203198 (WhatsApp line)
