The Kwara State Government has outlined plans to create 4,000 jobs through the newly built Garment Factory, an investment by the State under the leadership of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and it is aimed at raising incomes and diversifying the State’s economy.
The newly set up factory believed to be the biggest in the West Africa sub-region, is supposed to help the State tap at least 2 percent of the global Garment market. The State is hoping to build a garment Factory that can produce about 10,000 garments daily.
In a bid to drive up economic growth in Kwara state and fill the huge gap for ready-to-wear garments, Kwara wants to mass-produce garments. The managing director of the state’s new garment factory Olubukola Kifayat Adedeji explained that Kwara will redefine garment production in Nigeria and West Africa as a whole.
Mrs. Olubukola Kifayat Adedeji also added that the state will be involved in the manufacturing of garments that are ready-to-wear not just for local brands but also for international corporate organizations. This plan is aimed to tap a share of the global garment market which for now is largely dominated by China which commands over 31 percent of the total garment market. Africa on the other hand controls less than 7 percent of the global garment market. Things even get worse when it comes to Nigeria because Nigeria only commands less than 3 percent of the market.
The government of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq is hoping that Kwara State will henceforth take over 2 percent of the Nigerian share of the global garment market. The newly built garment factory has been equipped with sophisticated machines such as the Oshima automatic fabric-cutting machine.
It is a blessing to Kwara State youths as the factory which is set to begin operation by the first quarter of 2024 will soon start hiring workers, Kwara State Plans to create an average of 4,000 new jobs. The factory is now at the recruitment stage, supervisors are the first to be recruited after which about 300 production workers will follow. At full capacity, the factory intends to employ about 4,000 workers.
Kwara State Garment factory
Credit: Kwara State Government
This is a win-win investment both for the Kwara State Government as well as for the good people of Kwara State. On one hand, creating this factory amounts to more internally generated revenue for the State as this will boost all other sectors of the state economy such as finance, trade, transportation, and the export sector, thereby serving as an avenue for more sources of foreign exchange revenue for Kwara state.
Also, for the job seekers in Kwara, it is a win for them as young people will be able to be trained as factory workers, quality control officers, factory accountants, and factory supervisors or managers.
To produce about 10,000 garments daily and over 1500 machines, the factory will be a source of empowerment for the people of Kwara State as well as a training ground for women and youths who are seeking opportunities to learn how the garment production industry works.
