The Senate on Tuesday passed two amendment bills seeking to protect and develop Nigeria’s local manufacturing and processing industries and align procurement practices with evolving international standards.
The bills, sponsored by the Senate Majority Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, are the Raw Materials Research and Development Council Act (Amendment) Bill, 2026, and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply Management of Nigeria (Establishment) Act (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
Their passage followed reconsideration by the Senate after President Bola Tinubu returned the bills to the National Assembly with observations for further legislative action.
Moving the motion for reconsideration, Bamidele, who represents Ekiti Central Senatorial District, said the National Assembly had previously passed the bills and transmitted them to the President for assent.
He said, “The National Assembly had previously passed the bills and transmitted them to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for assent. However, the Federal Ministry of Justice subsequently identified fundamental issues that required further legislative consideration and clarification.”
According to Bamidele, the President returned the bills to the National Assembly with observations for reconsideration and necessary amendments.
He explained that the proposed amendment to the Raw Materials Research and Development Council Act was designed to protect and develop Nigeria’s local manufacturing and processing industries.
The Senate considered the bills in the Committee of the Whole, approved their provisions and completed the third-reading stage.
For the Raw Materials Research and Development Council amendment, lawmakers approved Clauses 1 to 5, the short title, explanatory memorandum and long title, as recommended by the Committee of the Whole.
The Senate also approved the clauses and long title of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply Management of Nigeria amendment bill in line with the committee’s recommendations.
The Raw Materials Research and Development Council amendment seeks to amend the council’s enabling law, identified in the bill as Act No. 28 of 2022, to provide for the protection and development of local manufacturing and processing industries, among other related matters.
The procurement institute amendment, meanwhile, seeks to amend the institute’s establishment law, Act No. 21 of 2007, to reflect developments in professional procurement practice internationally.
Following the consideration of the bills, the presiding officer asked senators to confirm whether the decisions reflected the proceedings of the Committee of the Whole. The lawmakers answered in the affirmative.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio subsequently announced the passage of the bills after their third readings.
The two amendments are expected to update the legal frameworks governing local raw-material development and procurement professional practice, with the former focused on supporting domestic industrial development and the latter on accommodating changes in international procurement standards.