.Mulls manufacturing plant in Nigeria
As part of its contributions towards the fight against the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, African indigenous mobile manufacturer, Mara Phones, has donated 5,000 units of face masks to traders at the Lagos Computer Village market. The company, which has just made its entry into the Nigerian mobile market, had earlier extended the same gesture to the country’s Ministry of Health, donating 10,000 units of the protective masks.
Speaking during the presentation of the donation to the market, Group Head, External Affairs at Mara Phones, Mr. Mamadou Kolade, said the gesture was informed by the need to support the government’s efforts in the fight against COVID-19. “As we embark on establishing our Nigerian operations, we must form part of the solutions to eradicate and curb the spread of the virus,” he said.
While appreciating the huge potentials for the brand in Nigeria, Kolade disclosed that the Maraphones, which currently has two plants, one in South Africa and another in Rwanda, would soon open a plant in Nigeria to serve Nigeria and the West African market. The plant, according to him, would create up to 2,000 jobs, mainly for Nigerians, when it becomes operational.
On the entry of the brand into Nigeria, Kolade said the company had been talking to the government since last year and they have been very supportive, hence the plan to open a manufacturing plant Nigeria in line with the government’s vision of industrialisation. This, he said, would lead to the transfer of knowledge and technology to the country.
“At the moment we are working with the Computer Village and they have been very supportive about the project because they are also excited that smartphones will be produced in Nigeria very soon,” he said.
Commenting the donation by Mara Phones, the leader of the Computer Village, who is also known as BabaOja, Mr. Adeniyi Olasoji, thanked the company for the kind gesture. According to him, the donation came as a boost to the market’s policy of ‘no face mask, no entry’. “This is another way of creating awareness about COVID-19 among our people. And we say a big thank you Mara Group, the manufacturer of Mara Phones,” he said.
Mr. Olasoji also expressed excitement about the planned manufacturing plant in Nigeria by Mara Phones, noting that this would reduce phone importation and lower costs of phones in the market while creating jobs for Nigerians.
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