Again, Nigerian lawmakers move to probe mass exit of foreign companies

The House of Representatives has resolved to set up a special committee to investigate the mass exit of multinational companies from Nigeria.

The yet-to-be-constituted committee is to probe the cause of the mass exit of the companies and devise means to halt the trend.

The resolution was a sequel to a motion moved by Babajimi Benson (APC, Lagos) on the exit of Kimberly-Clark, an American multinational consumer goods and personal care corporation.

This is the second time the House would move to probe this trend within the last four months.

In February, the House moved a similar motion bur no action has been taken thus far.

The motion

Mr Benson, in his motion, highlighted the exit of the Kimberly-Clark less than three years after it invested $100 million in setting up in Nigeria.

He expressed worries over the trend of companies leaving the country due to a hostile working environment, high cost of power, and high cost of raw materials.

The legislator, who represents Ikorodu Federal Constituency of Lagos State, said the company employs 10,000 people in direct and indirect jobs at their factory in Ikorodu, Lagos State.

“The exit of Kimberly-Clark will lead to massive job losses, affect the Nigerian economy, and cause difficulty in getting safe and healthy sanitary products at affordable prices in Nigeria,” he said.

He added that “Kimberly-Clark’s products like Huggies and Kotex have contributed positively to the improvement of menstrual and childcare health in Nigeria through the provision of safe sanitary pads and diapers for women and children.”

Mr Benson proposed that the management of Kimberly-Clark should rescind its decision to close down its business and exit the Nigerian business environment pending intervention by the House.

He also prayed the House to mandate the Committee on Commerce to urgently meet with the management of Kimberly-Clark and relevant government MDAs to discuss their challenges and reasons for exiting Nigeria to proffer lasting solutions to these challenges.

Debate

Speaking on the motion, Isiaka Ibrahim (APC, Ogun) said multinational companies are exiting all sectors of the economy, including the oil and gas sector.

He stated that the motion should not be restricted to only Kimberly-Clark but all multinationals that are about to leave the country.

Mr Isiaka said the House should beg the MNCs if it will help keep them in the country.

Consequently, he moved an amendment to the motion that a special committee be constituted to conduct a holistic investigation into the exit of multinational companies from the country.

The motion was adopted as amended when it was put to vote by the presiding officer, Deputy Speaker Ben Kalu.

MNCs that exited from Nigeria

PREMIUM TIMES reported the exit of US consumer goods powerhouse Procter & Gamble (P&G) from Nigeria in 2023.

P&G, the maker of iconic brands including Pampers, Gillette, Ariel, Always, and Oral-B, could incur charges anywhere between $1 billion and $1.5 billion after-tax from restructuring its operations in Nigeria and Argentina, two markets where business has been problematic for the corporation.

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Foreign companies, especially manufacturers and energy firms, have been exiting in droves, most citing the current foreign exchange crunch and devaluation of the naira, which means lower earnings for foreign companies in dollar terms.

In March 2023, Unilever announced an end to the production of its homecare and skin-cleansing products in the country because those categories are “margin dilutive” and the decision needed to be taken to make its Nigerian operation profitable.

Also, British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline said it was terminating its manufacturing operations in Nigeria, opting instead for a third-party distribution model.