BAUCHI – The Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) said it had trained chairmen of the 20 Local Government Areas in Bauchi State on ‘cluster technology’ as part of efforts to fast-track industrial development of the state.
The council’s Coordinator in the State Malam Ahmed Waziri, made this known in an interview with newsmen in Bauchi.
Waziri said that the chairmen were sensitized on the importance of clusters technology in industrial development and how to go about its formation.
He explained that cluster entailed the geographical concentration of various industries that produced similar product, using common raw materials or mineral resources as input.
He said that as custodian of the wealth in their localities, the council chairmen could easily identify key mineral resources available in their localities.
“This measure is preparatory to plans to deploy Ward-Based Cluster Technology Programme (WBCTP) to all the wards of the 774 local government areas in the country, to drive industrialization at local government level, “ he said.
He said that with the support of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology, each resource identified in all the local government areas, would be clustered to encourage the evolution of a business community that would proliferate and thrive easily.
Also speaking to journalists, Mrs Hajara Tanko, Director, Cluster Development Department of RMRDC, said that a cluster-based strategy had proved to be effective in ensuring the socio-economic development of rural areas.
She explained that the goal was to transform Nigeria into a major producer and exporter of value- added products and generate employment, thereby addressing poverty at the grassroots.
According to her, the technology has the potential of stimulating rapid economic growth by facilitating home-grown industrialisation through the development of none-oil sector.
“The raw material-based cluster strategy is a strategy developed by the council to ensure the maximum sourcing of raw material through value addition.
“It is only through this that industries can have sustainable supply of the much needed raw materials for their production, “she added.
She said that the chairmen of the respective local government areas needed to identify the competitive resources found in their respective areas and key into them.
“They could do so by getting entrepreneurs that will develop the identified resources and then provide them (entrepreneurs) with the necessary policy and enabling environment.