The textile industry in Nigeria is at an all-time low. Out of the more than 250 mills that were in operation in 1970s, less than 25 are currently in production. The situation is attributed to an aggregation of factors, ranging from obsolete machinery, high interest rate, and inadequate infrastructure, to lack of improvement in the local sourcing of raw materials.

Leadership failed to sustain the manufacturing and textile industries when the country discovered oil. Some of the constraints of raw material sourcing in the country’s textile industry include a higher priority to food crops than cotton, poor prices and market dynamics, lack of fertilizers, inadequate and untimely supply of inputs, seed contamination, inadequate knowledge of production packages and non-availability of these technologies including pest and disease control.

The country is trying to revive its cotton, textile and garment industry. The cotton sector is being revamped. Nigeria hopes to be a net exporter of textile raw materials by fully exploiting its raw material potential. Nigeria's textile industry used to be the third largest in Africa. In Nigeria, textile manufacturing is a key local industry, supported by a chain of suppliers such as cotton growers and natural dye makers. However, traditional methods of dyeing fabrics are threatened by cheap imports from abroad.