The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) on Monday withdrew its participation in the 2020 Annual Nigeria Manufacturing Expo/Manufacturing Partnership for African Development (NME/mPAD) events organised by Clarion Events West Africa.
The group said its decision was based on the decision of its partner, Clarion Events West Africa, to withdrew its business interest from Nigeria, and sack of its workers in Lagos.
Clarion Events West Africa is a division of Clarion Events Global Group responsible for producing and delivering innovative and market-leading events in many countries.
The Clarion Events West Africa head office is in Lagos, where it delivers international trade exhibitions to markets on the continent.
The Nigeria office, it was learnt, benefits from having extensive knowledge of the economy and exhibition sector as well as the support of the Clarion Events global network which include offices in 10 countries employing over 700 workers and a substantial network of international agents.
In a statement, MAN Director-General, Segun Ajayi-Kadir said: “MAN ceases to be part of any expo being organised by Clarion Events West Africa, and as such the general public is hereby advised to be wary of any individual or group of persons parading themselves as organisers of Nigeria Manufacturing Equipment Expo in partnership with MAN.
“MAN members are particularly put on notice to be aware. We also wish to express our deep appreciation to the exhibitors (both local and international), the general public and our media partners who have supported the association in the organisation of the previous four editions of NME/mPAD,” the statement read in part.
The 2019 Nigeria Manufacturing & Equipment Expo was organised by Clarion Events West Africa and it was held between March 12 and 14 this year in Lagos.
NME is the Official Trade Fair for the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (Event Patron), organised with the support and participation of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment (Host Ministry) and Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) .
The yearly event runs simultaneously with the Nigerian Raw Materials Expo (NIRAM) where raw materials including cash crops, cocoa, cotton, and minerals can be purchased from local and international exhibitors.
Last year, the event featured about 4000 leading manufacturers and SME’s from West Africa countries seeking for affordable, end of line manufacturing machinery, tools and solutions which involved: Dangote Group, Procter & Gamble, Guinness, Nestle Nigeria and Unilever.
The also feature Manufacturing Partnership for African Development mPAD and Nigerian Raw Materials Exposition.
But the Next year’s event, the Director General said that MAN is planning its sole International Equipment Manufacturing Expo and promised that the details would be communicated in due course to the general public.