The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has expressed deep concern over growing calls for the unrestricted importation of petroleum products, warning that such a policy direction could undermine Nigeria’s industrialisation efforts and weaken the country’s economic sovereignty.
In a policy statement titled “Import Liberalisation and the Risks of Deindustrialisation in Nigeria,” the CPPE cautioned that Nigeria should be consolidating domestic refining capacity and strengthening local production instead of drifting toward excessive import dependence.
According to the economic advocacy group, the ongoing debate around petroleum product imports extends beyond the downstream oil sector and touches on the broader architecture of Nigeria’s economic philosophy, macroeconomic resilience, and long-term industrial development.
“The debate goes far beyond petroleum products. It speaks to the very architecture of Nigeria’s economic philosophy, the future of industrialisation, the resilience of the macroeconomy and, ultimately, the preservation of the country’s economic sovereignty,” the CPPE stated.
The organisation stressed that no country has achieved industrial greatness through import dependence, noting that prosperous economies are built on production, refining, manufacturing, value addition, and the strengthening of domestic productive capacity.
It warned that countries that become excessively dependent on imports inevitably export jobs, weaken domestic industries, erode local investments, and compromise economic sovereignty.
The CPPE therefore urged policymakers to avoid adopting a policy regime that undermines domestic production in the name of liberalisation or competition.
Highlighting the consequences of import dependence, the organisation recalled that Nigeria’s long-standing reliance on imported petroleum products created major distortions within the economy over the years.
According to the CPPE, excessive fuel importation placed enormous pressure on the country’s foreign reserves, weakened the naira, accelerated the collapse of domestic refineries, worsened foreign exchange illiquidity, and fuelled corruption within the subsidy regime.
The group further noted that at the height of the fuel subsidy era, Nigeria spent trillions of naira annually subsidising imported petroleum products, effectively transferring jobs, industrial opportunities, and wealth creation to foreign economies.
“The country was also spending over $10 billion annually on petroleum product imports,” the statement added.
CPPE maintained that the consequences of the import-dependent model were severe and far-reaching, stressing the need for Nigeria to pursue policies that prioritise local refining, expand industrial capacity, and promote sustainable domestic production.
The organisation called for a balanced economic approach that supports competition while protecting strategic national industries capable of driving employment, industrial growth, and economic resilience.
