The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise has urged the federal government to enact comprehensive legislation that would give full legal backing to the proposed Nigeria First Policy, designed to institutionalise local content, domestic production, and economic self-reliance across all sectors of the economy.
Chief Executive Officer of the CPPE, Dr. Muda Yusuf, described the initiative as a bold and strategic framework aimed at repositioning Nigeria’s economy toward self-sufficiency by prioritising Nigerian goods, services, labour, and enterprises in both public and private procurement and investment decisions.
According to him, the Nigeria First Policy seeks to move beyond mere executive orders and policy statements by establishing an enforceable, incentive-driven, and legally supported system that embeds economic nationalism within the nation’s development framework.
“Nigeria has experienced similar policy interventions in the past, including executive orders promoting local procurement and domestic participation. While these interventions demonstrated good intent, their impact was limited by weak enforcement mechanisms, poor institutional coordination, lack of legislative backing, and policy inconsistency,” Yusuf said.
He explained that the new policy “seeks to overcome these past shortcomings through a structured, enforceable, incentive-driven and legally backed framework that will institutionalize local content and domestic value creation as national economic priorities.”
Dr. Yusuf noted that once enacted through legislation, the policy would enhance consistency, accountability, and sustainability while tackling structural weaknesses such as import dependence, low domestic production capacity, and exchange rate instability.
Describing the initiative as a national economic security agenda, he said its implementation would open up transformative opportunities for inclusive growth, job creation, industrial linkages, human capital development, and overall economic stability.
Calling for the enactment of a Nigeria First Policy Act, Yusuf stressed the need to codify the principles of local content, procurement preference, and domestic participation. He emphasised that for the policy to be effective, a robust implementation structure must be built on five key pillars: strategic procurement policy, fiscal and monetary incentives, legislative backing, institutional capacity and oversight, and private sector collaboration.
He argued that reducing import dependence would stabilise the macroeconomic environment and shield the economy from external shocks such as pandemics, geopolitical tensions, or global supply chain disruptions.
Yusuf also outlined how strengthening local content in agriculture, manufacturing, services, and extractive industries could generate millions of jobs, empower small and medium enterprises, and promote inclusive growth.
He attributed the failure of past interventions to weak enforcement, overlapping institutional mandates, and inconsistent policies, noting that the new framework would incorporate measurable compliance requirements and penalties for defaulters.
Under the proposed plan, the CPPE recommended the establishment of a Nigeria First Policy Implementation and Monitoring Agency to ensure compliance across Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), evaluate performance, and publish annual scorecards to promote transparency and accountability.
The organisation further suggested embedding local preference clauses in all public procurement and investment promotion policies, alongside targeted fiscal measures such as tax reliefs, credit support, and tariff protection to strengthen the competitiveness of domestic producers.
Yusuf concluded that the success of the initiative would depend on strong political will, effective collaboration between the public and private sectors, and coordinated action at all levels of government.
