By Adaora Adibe
The House of Representatives has taken the first reading of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC) Act Amendment Bill, 2025, marking a key step toward final concurrence with the Senate on a piece of legislation that could reshape Nigeria’s industrial landscape.
The bill, which seeks to amend the RMRDC Act of 2022, was introduced in the House on Tuesday, July 22, 2025. Popularly referred to as the ‘30 % Value Addition Bill,’ it proposes that no raw material shall be exported from Nigeria without undergoing at least 30 per cent value addition.
This is part of strategic steps to safeguard local jobs, protect Nigeria’s processing and manufacturing industries, and reduce the country’s dependence on imported raw materials.
The bill had previously passed through all legislative stages in the Senate, where it enjoyed overwhelming support. It is now undergoing the second stage of Nigeria’s bicameral legislative process, where the House of Representatives must deliberate, debate, and possibly amend the bill before concurrence is reached.
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If both chambers pass the bill in identical form, it will be sent to the President for assent, at which point it will become law.
While passing the bill in the red chamber, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, commended the Senate Committee on Science and Technology for thorough work, describing the bill as a “step in the right direction toward Nigeria’s industrialisation.”
“The proposed amendment will help promote sustainable resource management, safeguard the environment, and catalyse economic development,” Akpabio said. “It will also support job creation in domestic industries by reducing the export of unprocessed raw materials.”
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Science and Technology, Senator Aminu Iya Abbas, noted that stakeholders widely supported the bill during public hearings. “Many agreed that the legislation would address issues such as the frequent rejection of Nigerian exports due to poor processing and low value addition,” he said.
The proposed law aligns with Nigeria’s broader economic transformation agenda, including promoting industrial growth, improving export quality, and enhancing competitiveness in global markets.
As deliberations continue in the House, the bill is expected to generate considerable interest from industry players, policymakers, and development partners, all of whom have long advocated for stronger local content and value-chain optimisation in Nigeria’s raw materials sector.
