The federal government has described the rising cost of cement in Nigeria as unacceptable and threatened to open the borders in order to force down the price of the product.
The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, who dropped the warning on Tuesday, said key components of cement manufacturing were locally sourced and the recent increase in the price of the product was unreasonable and unacceptable.
He threatened that the government might open the borders for cement importation if manufacturers of the product fail to heed the pleas for a price reduction.
According to him, major input materials for cement production, such as limestone, clay, silica sand, and gypsum, are available and sourced within Nigeria, and hence, the final price of cement should not be dependent on the dollar.
Dangiwa made this known in Abuja at an emergency meeting held with cement and building materials manufacturers.
He said the price of gas that manufacturers are using as an excuse should not be because gas is a raw material found within the country, and the excuse of an increase in mining equipment should not come up because equipment bought by these manufacturers has been used for decades and not just purchased every day.
