By Our Reporter
ABUJA (PRECISE POST) – The Federal Government has pledged stronger support for local furniture production, interior design and technical skills development as the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Engr. Muttaqha Rabe Darma, PhD, committed up to N10 million to support youth empowerment initiatives under the 2026 Abuja Interior and Furniture Summit.
The Minister made the commitment on Wednesday in Abuja when he received organisers and partners of the summit on a courtesy visit, during which he also unveiled the official logo of the Abuja Interior and Furniture Summit 2026.
Darma said the proposed intervention would be channelled specifically towards equipping and empowering young Nigerians with practical skills across the furniture, interior decoration and broader building industry value chain.
The summit is being organised in partnership with the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), Nigerian Institute of Architects, Federal University of Transportation, Daura, TETFund, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Katsina State Government, Katsina Talent and Digital Innovation Centre and Katsina State Institute of Management Studies.
The organisers said the initiative was designed to reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported furniture, promote locally manufactured products, strengthen technical and vocational skills, create employment for young people and improve the quality of furnishing and interior design in the housing and built-environment sector.
Speaking during the visit, the Coordinator of the Abuja Interior and Furniture Expo, Faisal Jafar Rafindadi, said the initiative was the product of years of efforts to promote innovation and local furniture manufacturing, including activities associated with the Katsina Furniture and Innovation Centre.
Rafindadi said the summit had become necessary because of the enormous economic potential of Nigeria’s furniture industry and the challenges confronting the sector, including inadequate machinery, unreliable electricity supply and poor infrastructure.
He recalled that Nigerian furniture makers had estimated that the country spent more than $8 billion annually on furniture imports in 2019, describing the figure as an indication of the urgent need to build domestic manufacturing capacity.
“Our goal is to promote made-in-Nigeria furniture, create jobs for youth and ensure that homes built under the leadership of the Ministry are world-class in design and furnishing,” he said.
The President of the Nigerian Institute of Architects, Architect Sani I. Saulawa, highlighted the shortage of properly trained artisans and middle-level technical professionals in Nigeria’s construction industry.
Saulawa said the skills gap was particularly evident in trades such as carpentry and other technical areas of building construction, warning that the engagement of unqualified artisans could lead to poor workmanship, failure to meet approved standards and, in extreme cases, building collapse.
He also noted that the migration of skilled craftsmen from neighbouring countries had further exposed the shortage of competent local artisans.
“You find out that there is a lot of shoddy work or works that are not done to standards and specifications, which often lead to failures and eventually collapse,” he said.
He said the Nigerian Institute of Architects was supporting the summit because of its potential to promote technical competence, improve standards in the built environment and create sustainable employment opportunities.
Also speaking, Abdulhamid Usman, Personal Assistant to the Executive Secretary of the National Board for Technical Education, said the Board was working to formalise Nigeria’s large informal sector, particularly practitioners in furniture production and interior decoration.
Usman said the country had a large pool of talented people with practical skills, but many lacked structured training, certification and adequate opportunities to develop their crafts.
He expressed optimism that the partnership with the summit would help create greater awareness among young Nigerians while supporting government efforts to expand skills acquisition and entrepreneurship.
The Rector of the Katsina State Institute of Technology and Management, Dr. Musa Ahmed Zayyad, said the institution had expanded its programmes to ensure that students acquired practical and entrepreneurial skills alongside academic qualifications.
Zayyad said the institution currently offered nearly 18 skills-based training programmes, including carpentry and welding, as well as soft skills such as public communication and effective writing.
He disclosed that the institution had recently acquired skills-development equipment worth more than N54 million through TETFund support.
The Rector, who said the Minister serves as Chairman of the institution’s Governing Council, explained that students were expected to graduate with multiple competencies.
“Our students, when they graduate, must graduate with three skills or certificates,” he said.
He explained that students were required to obtain their academic certificates while also acquiring entrepreneurship and additional technical or soft skills before graduation.
According to him, students now participate in workshops alongside their regular academic programmes and are encouraged to select trades that could prepare them for employment, self-employment and enterprise development.
A medical doctor, Dr. Kabiru Mustapha, who was part of the delegation, said the health sector also had an important role to play in the furniture and artisan industry, particularly in promoting occupational health and safety.
He called for greater awareness among artisans and workers in furniture production, construction and related trades on workplace hazards, safety standards and measures for protecting their health.
Responding, Darma commended the organisers for their creativity and determination to develop initiatives capable of challenging young Nigerians to innovate and deploy their talents productively.
The Minister said he had followed Rafindadi’s activities over the years, particularly his work associated with the Katsina Furniture and Innovation Centre, and urged the organisers to remain resilient despite the challenges of developing a sustainable industry.
“I like what Faisal is doing. I like his creativity and innovative mind, trying to bring things that will move young people, challenge them, make them think and make them use their own brains,” he said.
Darma described the furniture and interior industry as a major component of the housing and construction value chain, noting that it could create opportunities for designers, architects, carpenters, furniture manufacturers, transporters, installers, decorators, innovators and other professionals.
He said the sector could also accommodate people with technical expertise, creative abilities and soft skills, stressing that the various stages involved in transforming an idea into a finished product created employment opportunities.
“As far as I’m concerned, there is what we call design thinking,” he said, explaining that an individual could conceive an idea while another person with the required technical skills could translate it into a drawing, with other professionals handling production, transportation, installation and decoration.
The Minister said the summit would expose young Nigerians to opportunities in furniture manufacturing, interior decoration, design thinking and other specialised areas of the building industry.
“This summit will eventually help a lot of young people realise the value that is inherent in that aspect of the value chain of the building industry, furniture making and decoration in the house,” he said.
He added that the initiative could enable more Nigerians to acquire skills, discover their talents and create sustainable livelihoods.
Darma, however, clarified that the Ministry might not have direct budgetary resources to fund the summit, saying his intervention would be focused on youth development and skills empowerment.
He pledged to personally mobilise support for the initiative and promised funding of up to N10 million, subject to clear demonstration by the organisers that the money would be used to improve the skills and productive capacity of young people.
“The money I’m going to give is going to be channelled to the young people,” he said.
“We are not doing it as individuals. What you are doing through the summit must enhance the ability of young people, and then we will put our money there.”
The Minister urged the organisers to remain innovative, creative and resilient, stressing that the development of Nigeria’s furniture and interior industry could contribute significantly to job creation, industrial growth and improved standards in the housing sector.
He subsequently unveiled the logo of the Abuja Interior and Furniture Summit 2026, describing the initiative as a new chapter for Nigeria’s interior and furniture industry.
The organisers said the summit would bring together stakeholders from education, technical training, architecture, furniture manufacturing, innovation, technology and housing to develop strategies for building a stronger local industry.
They said the event would focus on developing artisans, promoting made-in-Nigeria furniture, encouraging innovation and creating pathways for young Nigerians to transform practical and creative skills into sustainable livelihoods.
“This is the beginning of a new chapter for the Nigerian interior and furniture industry,” the organisers said.
“Together, we will build, design and furnish the Nigeria of our dreams.”
