MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY IN NIGERIA

The manufacturing industry is defined as the industry that is involved in the turning of raw material into a new product by mechanical or chemical processes at home or in the factory.

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Characteristics of Manufacturing industries

1 Manufacturing industries are largely small-scale
2 Their produce is mainly consumed in the local market.
3 Emphasis is on the production of consumer goods.
4 These industries are also labour intensive i.e they require large labour force to operate.
5 Most manufacturing industries are mainly light industries.
6 Industries are concentrated in few location especially in the urban centre.
7 They do not easily source their raw material from within the country.
8 Most industries also depend on foreign countries for their raw material.
9 Nigerian manufacturing industries rely on imported skilled labour from foreign countries.

Classification of Manufacturing industries

Manufacturing industries can be grouped into three main classes which are light, consumer goods and heavy industries.

1 LIGHT INDUSTRIES

• These are secondary industries which produce relatively light weight good such as matches, television set, fan, books and pencils.
• They employ the service mainly women.
• They produce final or consumable goods.
• They are found mainly in tropical African countries e.g Nigeria, Ghana.

2 CONSUMER GOODS INDUSTRIES

• The industries deal with the turning of raw materials into consumable goods.
• They are normally located in cities e.g Lagos Ibadan and Kaduna.

3 HEAVY INDUSTRIES

• They are also secondary industries.
• They employ the services of main males
• Product is heavy or bulky
• Example includes metallurgical petroleum and shipbuilding industries.
• However heavy industries are commonly found in Europe, U.S.A, Germany and Japan.

Industries can also be classified into primary, secondary and tertiary industries.

1 PRIMARY INDUSTRIES

• These industries are concerned with the extraction of raw material provided by nature.
• They are also called extractive industries.
• Examples include mining, fishing, lumbering, farming and livestock.

2 SECONDARY INDUSTRIES

• These industries turn turn raw material into consumable or finished goods.
• Example include construction, building textile, shipbuilding, iron and steel and chemical industries.

3 TERTIARY INDUSTRIES

• It could also be indirect service like the police, custom, army, navy.
• It could be direct service like trading, banking, teaching, medicals and transportation.
• These are concerned with the rendering of service.