Sterling Bank is partnering Innoson Motors to finance the purchase of locally made vehicles produced by the company as part of steps to champion the use of locally manufactured goods and services.
According to the partnership agreement signed between the bank and Innoson Motors Limited last weekend in Nnewi, Sterling Bank will provide auto finance to prospective customers willing to acquire any brand of Innoson Motor Vehicles.
According to the partnership agreement signed between the bank and Innoson Motors Limited last weekend in Nnewi, Sterling Bank will provide auto finance to prospective customers willing to acquire any brand of Innoson Motor Vehicles.
Sterling Bank’s executive director, Finance and Strategy, Mr Abubakar Suleiman, in a statement issued at the weekend, explained that the partnership was informed by the current economic headwinds and exchange rate volatility fuelled by the fall in oil price which brought to the fore the need to diversify the nation’s revenue base and support the manufacturing sector through the patronage and use of locally made products and services.
“The country’s dependence on oil exports for foreign exchange and the global oil sector downturn driven by the falling oil price has led to near economic recession in the country and has negatively impacted other sectors with prices of imported products rising significantly.
“For the country to navigate the current headwinds there is an urgent need to diversify the economy and empower the manufacturing sector of the country. But local manufacturers will not thrive if they are not patronised by Nigerians. This is why we have entered this partnership with Innoson,” he stated.
Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing Company (IVM) is the premiere private vehicle manufacturing company in Nigeria. The indigenous company, headquartered in Nnewi, Anambra State, was commissioned in 2014 and has since gone on to produce several ranges of vehicles from trucks, SUVs, to mini-buses. The chairman of Innoson Group of Companies, the parent company of Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing Company (IVM), Dr Innocent Chukwuma, speaking at the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU), described the partnership as “a welcome development and indicated that the company was committed to producing premium quality automobiles as it serves the Nigerian market.
