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Experts condemn unhealthy rivalry among cement manufacturers

By on June 12, 2014

Experts in the construction industry have expressed concern over what they described as “unhealthy rivalry” among cement manufacturers in the country, saying this has resulted in the high cost of the product.

While calling on the government to address insufficient power generation, obsolete technology and corruption in the country, the experts advised the National Assembly to, as a matter of urgency, pass the proposed Standards Organisation of Nigeria Act (Amended Bill) to enable the agency function effectively.

The experts made the suggestions in a communiqué issued on Monday and signed by the Project Coordinator of NGO Network and member of the National Technical Committee on Standards, Mr. Mohammed Attah, at the end of a one-day roundtable in Abuja.

The forum had as its theme: ‘Sensitisation of standards, grades and usage of cement in Nigeria’, and was jointly organised with the Standards Awareness Group.

According to them, the rivalry between the manufacturers and their regulators has constituted a stumbling block to the development of the building sector in the country.

They said there were established scientific facts and findings that there was no sub-standard cement produced in the country.

The communiqué read in part, “The causes of building collapse in Nigeria are attributed to wrong applications of cement, low level manpower, lack of professionalism and faulty designs, among others; as a result of the confusion set in by cement manufacturers in Nigeria and due to inadequate monitoring by the regulators, there is continuous and persistent high cost of cement in Nigeria.

“Insufficient infrastructuraldevelopment, especially in the power sector, is another factor that leads to the high price of cement.

“There are incidents of building collapse in Nigeria due to use of sub-standard building materials. Some stakeholders are ignorant of the grades of cement in Nigeria. There is low level of awareness creation by the manufacturers, policy makers, regulators and other key stakeholders on the use of the different types of cement and their applications.

“There is deliberate attempt by some manufacturers of cement to monopolise and politicise the market, thereby replacing patriotism with business.

There are competitive paid adverts by unknown faces to confuse and complicate the main issues surrounding cement and building collapse.”

 

 

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