Border closure will create jobs in textile industry –Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday said his administration was making effort to expand the textile and garment industry in the quest to make it create two million jobs for Nigerians.

Buhari spoke while declaring open the 31st annual educational conference of the National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria in Abuja.

He was represented at the event by the Director General of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria, Olusegun Ajiboye.

The President stressed that the Federal Government would strengthen the capacity of the industry to help actualise the policy of his administration to create 100 million jobs in the next 10 years.

Buhari said the recent policy to close the Nigerian land borders would help protect the textile industry while financial assistance offered by the Central Bank of Nigeria would help its growth.

He added that the Federal Government would ensure training and retraining of about 40,000 textile and garment workers to enhance their capacity.

The President said, “It is commendable that your union devote significant resources to the education of members. The investment has contributed to the well-acknowledged mature industrial relation system in the garment industry.

“Despite the current challenges facing the textile industry, industrial peace and harmony still persist in the sector. In the 40 years of industrial unionism in Nigeria, there has not been a single strike in the textile industry. I call on other unions to emulate the cooperation between workers and employers in the industry.

“In the last four years, this government has deployed resources to job creating sector like agriculture and mining with millions of direct and indirect sustainable jobs created for farmers and traders.”

The President disclosed that part of the results of his administration’s effort was that 23 states were investing in cotton production with quality seed provided by the Federal Government.

Earlier, the General Secretary of the union, Isa Aremu, said for the country to make progress in building its economy, it must have control over what came into the country.