Some symbols reflect the disorder and complexities of Nigeria's economy more clearly than the ever-present 'Keke NAPEP' tricycle...
Some symbols reflect the disorder and complexities of Nigeria's economy more clearly than the ever-present 'Keke NAPEP' tricycle, this frustrating device with three wheels from India, which zips through the streets of Nigerian cities, towns, and villages with a persistent effort to irritate and unsettle. For some, it signifies business opportunity, employment generation, and the spreading of transportation access. For others, it is a sign of distress, a clear sign of industrial decline, reliance on technology, and the growing informal nature of work.
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The "Keke economy," as it might now be referred to, represents both a means of survival and a critique of policy, where empty promises about industrialization have been revealed as false displays.
The emergence of the Keke economy started as a temporary solution under the National Poverty Eradication Programme (NAPEP) in the early 2000s, when the government aimed to create self-employment options for thousands of young people who were not working.
As time passed, the tricycle emerged as an alternative to the closed Peugeot, Styre, Fiat, and Mercedes assembly plants, as well as the now-defunct textile and oil mills, continuing to represent the industrial potential that Nigeria was unable to maintain. The spread of Keke reveals a more complex narrative about Nigeria's dual economy. One side consists of a formal economy driven by oil revenues, banking, telecommunications, minerals, and imports; the other is an informal, cash-driven system where millions struggle to survive through transport, trade, and services.
The tricycle represents the defining symbol of this era. It illustrates how the lack of large-scale industrial jobs has pushed people into small-scale businesses that are both creative and unstable, as well as emotionally exhausting. Nigeria once aimed to become Africa's leading manufacturer. The 1970s saw the creation of significant industrial sites such as the Ajaokuta Steel Plant, Kaduna Refinery, Peugeot Assembly in Kaduna, Volkswagen and Leyland in Lagos and Ibadan, Fiat in Kano, Styre in Bauchi, Mercedes in Enugu, and the textile mills of Kano and Kaduna. These were the foundations of modernity and self-sufficiency planned by national leaders.
However, by the 1990s, these sectors had either declined or been privatized into inactivity. Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs), deregulation, and reliance on imports weakened the productive foundation. Instead, an informal service sector emerged, shifting from automobiles to motorcycles, tricycles, recharge card sellers, POS agents, and small-scale traders. 'Okada' and 'Keke' became the primary option for millions of Nigerians who had left rural farming and were excluded from formal manufacturing. Currently, the Keke economy accommodates jobless graduates, artisans, displaced farmers, and ex-factory workers. It directly and indirectly employs millions, ranging from drivers and mechanics to spare parts dealers and vendors of jerry cans filled with fuel. In essence, the Keke economy has now become the sphere of the lumpenproletariat and the unemployed. Yet, it operates without organization, social support, or technological advancement.
The tricycles are imported, primarily from India and China, highlighting Nigeria's reliance on foreign production. They are assembled in a crude and unrefined manner by untrained individuals on our city streets. The Keke phenomenon has both economic and political dimensions. It demonstrates how governance structures respond to poverty through temporary solutions rather than long-term change. Various governments have provided tricycles as part of empowerment initiatives, typically linked to electoral favoritism instead of proper economic strategy. What could have been a short-term solution turned into a lasting survival economy. Should this decline persist, our economy might regress to wheelbarrow manufacturing as the defining industrial activity of our time.
For local governments and urban unions, the Keke sector also serves as a source of income. Daily charges, tickets, and 'loading fees' have established an informal taxation system in which thousands pay without receiving social protection or recognition. This unofficial financial structure advantages political intermediaries but contributes little to modernising transportation or generating long-term jobs. It simply supports idle workers and superficial tactics that are presented as 'development'. The tricycle's mechanical simplicity conceals a more profound reliance.
Each part of its unrefined structure, from the spark plugs to the axles, is imported. There is almost no Nigerian contribution beyond basic assembly and maintenance. In essence, the Keke represents our technological weakness: we can operate them, service them, and even paint them in vibrant colors, but we are unable to produce them. They are made in India, transported to Nigeria, and then put together on the streets in our large urban areas.
This cycle is evident throughout Nigeria's economic landscape. Whether it's mobile phones, generators, or cars, the country imports the outcomes of other countries' industrial advancements while exporting unprocessed resources without any enhancement. This leads to a trade deficit, monetary instability, and widespread joblessness. The Keke economy flourishes due to this imbalance, transforming imported items into tools for survival and irritation instead of progress. For Nigeria's goal of industrial growth, as outlined in the Lagos Plan of Action from 1980 and earlier national development strategies, to be rekindled, it needs to shift from mere assembly to innovation and creation.
Successful industrialization depends on a sequence of innovations, ranging from metallurgy and machine tools to electronics, software, and transportation engineering. If the complexity of such a system proves too great, the wheelbarrow can serve as an initial step for this change if effectively incorporated into an industrial policy structure. We should envision a Nigerian Mobility Initiative (NMI) that transforms the Keke into a locally developed electric tricycle, utilizing solar power and manufactured in clusters throughout the nation. This initiative would create jobs in design, manufacturing, distribution, and repair, while decreasing reliance on fuel and lowering carbon emissions.
It would also connect technical colleges, research institutions, and private investors and innovators into a working value chain. China's industrial achievements started with these small steps, involving imitation, adaptation, and ultimately innovation. What Nigeria imports from India today was once imported by India from Japan. Industrialization is a gradual process; it demands a vision and continuity that goes beyond political changes. It also needs a steady push from the government.
The growth of the Keke economy is also connected to Nigeria's disordered urbanization. As rural regions face challenges like insecurity, desertification, and poverty, millions move to cities in search of better opportunities. The tricycle serves as their way into the urban economy, filling the gap left by the lack of factory or construction jobs. However, excessive dependence on such informal work leads to overcrowded cities, increased traffic, and pollution, while putting drivers at risk of exploitation and unsafe conditions. Urban planning in Nigeria, including in Abuja, has not matched this rapid population growth.
Only a few cities have well-integrated transportation networks. The lack of effective bus and train services has made the Keke essential yet insufficient. Industrialization, therefore, should involve not just factories but also the infrastructure necessary for modern city life, such as roads, electricity, housing, and public transport. For the time being, the tricycle has become a lasting and unavoidable part of our cities and towns. Moreover, it has evolved into a cultural symbol representing resilience and adaptability, albeit in a challenging and unsustainable way. It links the urban elite with the lower class, students with market vendors, and migrants with the city. It has influenced art, music, and politics. However, this acceptance of poverty and makeshift solutions is also risky: it reduces aspirations and supports underdevelopment.
When a society starts to celebrate survival more than advancement, it runs the risk of losing its shared vision for the future. The Keke economy, although clever, must not be seen as the standard or the limit of our goals. Rather, it should serve as the foundation upon which a more productive economy is built. To turn the Keke economy into a driver of industrial growth, Nigeria requires a comprehensive approach that includes the following:
(1) Regional Production and Installation Centers.
(2) Technology Transfer Agreements.
(3) Career and Skill-Based Education.
(4) Access to Finance for Small and Medium Enterprises.
(5) Green Transport Policy.
(6) Integrated Urban Mobility.
(7) Industrial Policy Consistency.
In the end, the Keke economy pushes us to reconsider the concept of development and to pose the question: Should progress be evaluated by the number of individuals engaged in survival-based work, or by a country's ability to manufacture what it consumes? Nigeria's policy discussions need to shift from reducing poverty to generating wealth; from replacing imports with local production to fostering innovation; from temporary empowerment to creating sustainable jobs.
Industrialization is not a luxury, but the base of independence. A country that is unable to produce its own tricycles, tractors, or transformers continues to be economically reliant and politically at risk. The sound and bustle of Keke vehicles on Nigeria's streets should serve as a reminder to decision-makers of both our creativity and the chances we have overlooked. Each tricycle symbolizes the energy of a society eager for meaningful involvement. Converting this potential into advancement demands foresight, bravery, and investment in science, technology, and people. Although the Keke economy may reflect strength at present, it must not turn into the end of Nigeria's industrial aspirations and the collapse of our national pride. Please, let us not permit our nation to fall further into a 'Wheelbarrow' economy!
Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).
