Were I running for Nigeria’s presidency I would seek to carve out a niche market in the manufacturing of deep sea submarines for the oceanography industry
Ayo Akinfe
[1] Anyone who is a student of global manufacturing will know that nations which carve out niches in certain sectors always go on to do well. You just need to look at how Britain dominated shipbuilding for decades or look at what Japan and Germany are currently doing in the global automobile market
[2] Are Nigerians aware of the fact that there is a niche market for deep sea submarines out there? Just look at what Brazil has done with the aircraft manufacturer Embraer to get my point
[3] Now, there is a place on earth called the Challenger Deep of the Mariana Trench near Guam in the Pacific. It is the deepest part of the ocean measuring about 10,911 metres (35,797 ft) in depth. In fact, it is so deep, only once has a manned submarine been down to its depths
[4] On average, the world’s five oceans have a depth of about 4,000 metres. There are very few vessels equipped to deal with this level of depth
[5] Now, for most submarines, their operating depth is between 300 and 450 metres. For a US Los Angeles-class submarine, its test depth is 450m (1,500 ft), suggesting a maximum depth of 675 metres to 900 meters or 2,250 to 3,000 feet
[6] More importantly, most submarines are owned by naval authorities. There are very few civilian submarines out there as we have with the shipping industry for instance
[7] Why is Nigeria not looking to fill this gap in the market by becoming the world’s biggest manufacturer of civilian submarines?
[8] We have 853km of Atlantic coastline yet do not have one marine manufacturing facility. Now that is a crime against humanity and totally unacceptable on my opinion. Why not build the world’s largest submarine manufacturing facility in somewhere like Bonny, Opobo, Warri, Badagry, Calabar or Forcados?
[9] I would actually go a step further by launching an ocean tour industry, taking tourists to the ocean floor for a unique experience. Visiting the Challenger Deep of the Mariana Trench, would be the ultimate top-of-the-range trip
[10] Just imagine how much revenue would be generated if say the Rivers State government had a travel company that arranged parties at the bottom of the ocean in submarines. We could build a global tourism industry around such unique experiences. Our intellectual laziness is our biggest bane!
