The Federal Government and the Auto Spare Parts and Machinery Dealers Association, ASPMDA, are set to strengthen collaboration aimed at repositioning Nigeria’s automotive industry, boosting local production of spare parts and tackling the growing menace of counterfeit products.
The Director-General of the National Automotive Design and Development Council, NADDC, Otunba Oluwemimo Osanipin, disclosed the government’s commitment at the just-concluded West African Automotive Summit held in Lagos.
Osanipin said the council was prepared to work closely with ASPMDA to support the production of quality automotive spare parts for the millions of vehicles operating on Nigerian roads.
He revealed that NADDC would soon visit ASPMDA’s Trade Fair Complex headquarters in Lagos to explore areas of partnership and discuss measures to support local manufacturers and dealers in delivering high-quality automotive components to Nigerians.
“We will work with ASPMDA with the aim of producing quality auto spare parts for vehicles across the country,” he said.
Speaking on the sidelines of the West Africa Automotive Show, ASPMDA President, Ngozi Emechebe, also called for deeper collaboration between the association and the Federal Government to drive automotive development, strengthen local manufacturing and improve standards within the industry.
Emechebe said ASPMDA was evolving from a traditional trading cluster into a modern automotive business hub capable of supporting Nigeria’s industrialisation ambitions and strengthening the automotive value chain.
According to him, the association had transformed significantly from informal street trading into a structured organisation operating from a world-class facility designed for large-scale automotive commerce and industry collaboration.
“All the time I have been coming to this fair, I have been dreaming of how to launch ASPMDA into the centre of this country,” he said.
“ASPMDA is a highly organised trading association. We have moved from street trading and now we have beautiful, world-class premises.”
He disclosed that discussions with NADDC on possible areas of collaboration were already ongoing, noting that the proposed partnership would focus on policies, institutional support and business-friendly initiatives capable of improving operations within the spare parts market.
“We need government support and partnership. We have a part to play in Nigeria’s automotive development agenda,” Emechebe said.
On the challenge of fake and substandard spare parts, the ASPMDA president said the association had intensified efforts to sanitise the market through stricter enforcement and closer collaboration with regulatory agencies.
He revealed that office spaces had already been allocated within the ASPMDA complex to agencies responsible for monitoring standards and combating counterfeit products.
“We want to make it a cultural matter so that when you violate it, you know where you are headed,” he said.
“If you bring in your product, defend it to the end consumer and stand by it. Adulteration is not allowed.”
Emechebe also advocated increased local manufacturing of automotive components, insisting that Nigerian-made products could outperform imported alternatives if produced according to standards tailored to local operating conditions.
“Local production is even better than foreign production,” he said.
“Whatever you want from a person, you must give it a standard Nigerians will see and buy — standards that fit Nigeria.”
He added that some ASPMDA members were already involved in manufacturing automotive components and expressed optimism that broader industrial partnerships could emerge as the sector expands.
The West Africa Automotive Show attracted regulators, manufacturers, dealers and other stakeholders from across the region to deliberate on emerging opportunities, policy direction and challenges facing the automotive industry in West Africa.