Politics
THE Association of Table Water Producers of Nigeria (ATWAP) in Niger has appealed to the state government for tax holiday to cushion the effect of high cost of production.
The ATWAP Chairman in the state, Mr Isiaka Busari, made the appeal during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Minna.
Busari said that since the lockdown, occasioned by COVID-19 pandemic, there had been increase in the cost of production, as most production materials came from China and Lagos.
“Some of our members have shut down because the cost of production has taken toll on their marginal profit.
“We are appealing to the state government to give us tax relief, because we are not operating at full capacity as a result of the lockdown caused by the pandemic.
“Before COVID-19, nylon used for production used to sell for N650 per kg. It now sells for N1,900 because the companies that produce the material within and outside the country have been affected by COVID-19,” he said.
Busari said that before the outbreak of coronavirus, a bag of sachet water used to be sold for N80, adding that it was now being sold for N100.
“The average producer of sachet water in the state produces and supplies 800 bags per day; but it is now difficult to produce 200 bags per day, and this will take about two days to sell because of low patronage, due to the lockdown.
“People hardly go out to work now; so there is the challenge of inadequate funds.
“Besides, the rainy season is here; the situation may be worse because many people may take to drinking rain water, due to lack of money,” he said.
According to him, there are over 4,000 members of the association registered by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) operating in the state, with each employing about 60 workers.
Busari, who said that ATWAP had taken many unemployed youths off the streets, added that government should come to their aid in order to keep the employees.
He also appealed to the state government to fumigate their premises, saying that the two-week notice given to them by the state Environmental Protection Agency to fumigate their factories would be an additional cost.
He said that the directive by the agency to shut down any factory that failed to do so might prompt most residents to drink water from unhealthy sources.
NAN
– June 7, 2020 @ 14:50 GMT |
Tags: Production cost: Table water producers seek tax holiday from Niger govt.
