What do you think of when you first hear the phrase “made in China”? There was a time when that term stood only for inferior and counterfeit goods, but not any more. “Made in China” is a changing and growing brand across the world.

Now what about “made in Nigeria”?

Speaking in terms of the arts, music, culture, fashion, this might not be a problem, but how about a made in Nigeria car, flats screen plasma 3D TV, or an android powered smart phone? Sure, that is another matter.

As passionate as I am about the development of this country, and as a player in the technology sector, aspiring for the day when every gadget in the average Nigeria home, can be made in Nigeria; however, I would never buy a “made in Nigeria” product out of sentiment.

IT MUST HAVE SOMETHING TO OFFER.

I know we still have a long way to go, but if we must become a force to reckoned with in quality design and products, when even while starting small, we must start well.

These are my expectations of Made in Nigeria products

Quality

The first point of call is quality. I have no reason to buy an iPad when an Ovim can give me what I want. With the advent of the Android platform, almost every special feature offered on the iPhone is being offered on the Android, the only thing left is qaulity.

There is this widespread attitude of sacrificing quality for quantity, and it’s one of the greatest killers of progress, we must avoid it like a plague.

Customer Support

If I want a phone, I would rather buy a Nokia because of its reputation of durability, and the fact that Nokia care centers are everywhere  and I can always get repairs and anything I need. As for laptops, I’ll go for HP. This may seam like a small issue but no one would like a product that can never be repaired even if it has a little fault.

Constant development and Innovation

Bill Gates once admitted that the heart of the Tech industry is constant innovation, anyone that fails to constantly change and improve will die out quickly. there is no tech giant now that hasn’t at least two to three innovations within this year alone. Apple has the iPAD2, the iCloud is coming out soon, and rumors of the iPhone3 is in the air as well. Microsoft is introducing Win8, Dell is delving into Table PCs, just name it. We must be prepared to start, and never stop innovating.

Local Content

Constant innovation is not possible if the intellectual property was entirely imported. Some local brands are only involved in assembly and marketing of their products, the entire technical work is done abroad, making it impossible to upgrade and improve on at will. This has to change and is obviously changing. Manpower must be trained and innovation encouraged. We can only preserve and improve on technology that we own.

I must highlight this point  which believe in so much: We must first build an industry before building businesses. By this I simply mean that no tech industry in Nigeria will reach the significant international prominence if we all don’t work together first to build an industrial platform and foundation upon which any company can stand and build an international brand. This foundation needs knowledge sharing, sacrificial investment in research and development, and significant plowback of profits at the onset.

Looking forward to Made in Nigeria products competing on the Global market.