The Federal Government has said it will not lift the ban on the importation of cement into the country. Rather, the government said it would encourage local cement manufacturers by providing a favourable.

This comments were made on Wednesday by President Umaru Yar‘Adua, at the inauguration of the United Cement Company‘s 2.5Mt cement plant at Mfamosing, Calabar, Cross River State.

Yar‘Adua, who was represented by the Minister for Commerce and Industry, Chief Achike Udenwa, said the Federal Government‘s new policy on cement production placed high premium on local firms as the only avenue for cheap cement in Nigeria.

He said the private sector was a major partner in development and realisation of the Seven-Point Agenda of the current administration. He said that the management of Unicem has made a giant stride and historical landmark in the cement industry in Nigeria.