The National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) said it is committed to the Vision of President Muhammadu Buhari to make Nigeria the hub for automotive development on the African continent and would not be distracted from that objective.
According to the NADDC, distractions will not derail it from that vision, as the council is focused on recording more achievements under its current director general, Mr. Jelani Aliyu (MFR).
To address issues regarding the activities of the agency, NADDC said under the leadership of Jelani Aliyu (MFR),that the council has attracted over one billion dollars investments into the auto sector in Nigeria, has introduced a 5 billion naira vehicle finance scheme for Nigerians and more than 15,000 made in Nigeria vehicles sold in 2019 alone.
Nigeria, it can be recalled, used to spend over eight billion dollars annually for the importation of used vehicles into the country.
However, current capacity for local vehicle production, according to NADDC stands at well over half a million annually, while manufacturers including Honda, Peugeot, Innoson, Mitsubishi amongst others have created thousands of jobs for Nigerians within the period,
The council reiterated that only 10 per cent of vehicle value will be put down when buying a new vehicle under the scheme that NADDC has put in place, while the over $8 billion spent by Nigerians annually to import used vehicles has been considerably reduced.
Already nearing completion, NADDC pointed is the Vehicle Materials Testing Centre in Kaduna State, which would ensure standard materials go into the production of locally manufactured vehicles and automotive components.
On his part, Director of Finance and Accounts, Dr David Oyetunji, said since his appointment as director has surpassed expectations, working with the director general to implement the mandate of the council.