Nigeria can now assemble up to 500,000 vehicles a year, enough to meet local demand, says NADDC

Abuja — Nigeria has the installed capacity to assemble between 450,000 and 500,000 vehicles a year, the head of the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) said on Tuesday.

"As of today, we are between 450,000 and 500,000 installed capacity for automobile in Nigeria," Director-General Joseph Osanipin said at the opening of the 26th Abuja International Motor Fair. Nigerians buy about 350,000 to 450,000 vehicles a year, so local assembly could meet domestic demand with the right support, he said.

What the industry needs

Osanipin named access to finance, supportive legislation and local production of components as critical. The NADDC is working on an automotive bill and a component development programme, and has trained about 40,000 automotive technicians. Assemblers have agreed to set up after-sales workshops across the country.

The council has also worked with the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CREDICORP) on consumer credit guidelines. More than half of CREDICORP's loans have gone to the automotive sector, he said.

Industry, Trade and Investment Minister Jumoke Oduwole called the sector a priority of the government's industrialisation agenda, noting new implementation guidelines for the Nigeria First Policy in the automotive sector. She said Nigeria will host the automotive exhibition at the 2027 Intra-African Trade Fair in Lagos from 5 to 11 November.

Electric vehicles

Mustapha Audu, president of the Electric Vehicle Assemblers and Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, said the association has 14 member companies and urged the government to turn the Nigeria First Policy into orders for locally assembled vehicles.

The fair, themed "Driving Nigeria's Automotive Future," runs at Eagle Square until 13 November.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria, 11 November 2026.