March 25, (THEWILL) – The Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, has said that the various intervention funds created by the apex bank are yielding the desired results.
He also noted that the production capacity of the economy is being enhanced and increased productivity achieved, following the strategic targeted policies enunciated by the bank.
Emefiele said this in his keynote address at the 32nd Seminar for Finance Correspondents & Business Editors, in Akure, Ondo State.
The three-day seminar, which ended Friday had “Exchange Rate Management and Economic Diversification in Nigeria: The PAVE (Produce, Add Value and Export) Option”, as its theme.
Emefiele, whose message was delivered virtually by the CBN Deputy Governor, Corporate Services, Mr Edward Adamu, noted that the bank’s intervention schemes provided the needed enabling environment with appropriate incentives to empower innovative entrepreneurs to drive growth and development.
He said that the tough periods called for bold and innovative decisions to be taken and that the bank did not shy away from doing what it considered to be in the best interest of our beloved country.
He said that the targeted policies introduced by the bank during the downturn in the economy and COVID-19 pandemic, saved the country from more severe impacts of the adverse situations.
“These adverse conditions eventually plunged the economy into a recession for the first time in about a quarter of a century. The media space was suffused with news about the depletion of the country’s foreign reserves and the depreciation of the Naira.
“That tough period called for bold and innovative decisions to be taken and we did not shy away from doing what we considered to be in the best interest of our beloved country.
“For us, the CBN was to act as a financial catalyst by targeting strategic sectors that could create jobs on a mass scale and reduce the country’s import bills.
“To solve the immediate and long-term economic challenges of the country, we needed to create an enabling environment with appropriate incentives to empower innovative entrepreneurs to drive growth and development.”
Emefiele recounted the monetary policy measures initiated by the bank, which were targeted at containing inflation and foreign exchange shortage, among other economic challenges.
“Towards containing inflation and cushioning the impact of the drop in the supply of foreign exchange in the economy, not only did we tighten the monetary policy stance over a period, we also introduced demand management approaches to conserve our reserves and support the domestic production of certain goods.
“The Bank encouraged manufacturers to consider local options in sourcing for raw materials by restricting access to FX on some items. Four of these items alone, at the time, constituted over one trillion of the country’s annual import Bills.”
He added, “In addition to these measures, the Bank also established an Investors and Exporters Window (I&E), to allow for purchase and sale of FX at prevailing market rate.
“Furthermore, we ensured the liberalisation of the Foreign Exchange Market through the operationalisation of the ‘Revised Guidelines for the Operation of Nigerian Inter-bank Foreign Exchange Market’ in June 2016. The guidelines introduced the Naira-settled Foreign Exchange Futures Market.”
Emefiele said that the intervention policies were in line with his vision for the bank which was unveiled on his first appointment as CBN governor in June 2014.
“Let me also remind us of the commitment I made while unveiling my vision for the CBN. It is on record that I had pledged to build a Central Bank that is professional, apolitical and people focused.
“My mission was and still is, to bequeath a Central Bank that focuses on building a resilient financial system that can serve the growth and development needs of our beloved country, Nigeria.”
Emefiele said that the CBN intervention policies (especially in the management of financial system liquidity, FX market and development financing initiatives), have been able to optimally balance the delicate objectives of price stability and real output growth.
He said that the policy measures have created job opportunities and contributed to diversifying the economy away from crude oil.
“In our desire to create jobs and diversify the economy away from crude oil, we have established numerous intervention programmes, such as Anchor Borrowers Programmes (ABP).
“Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme (CACS), Creative Industry Financing Initiative (CIFI), MSMEDF, CBN Agribusiness, Small and Medium Enterprises Investment Scheme (AgSMEIS) and the Real Sector Support Facility (RSSF), among others with remarkable success in accelerating growth of the economy and reducing poverty across the country.”
He said that the bank, in hosting the seminar, seeks to achieve a better public understanding of its carefully thought-out, and situation specific approach to the management of its monetary policies.
He noted that the measure demonstrates support for the economic development of the country through sustained emphasis on diversification.
About the Author
Sam Diala is a Bloomberg Certified Financial Journalist with over a decade of experience in reporting Business and Economy. He is Business Editor at THEWILL Newspaper, and believes that work, not wishes, creates wealth.
