Nigeria’s new forex policy driving growth in critical sectors – stakeholders
Reporter
The new forex policy of government, which has seen the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) continually injecting dollar into the foreign exchange market, has been commended as the right measure to boosting critical sectors of the economy, according to stakeholders.
Consensus among stakeholders is that Nigeria’s critical sectors are on the verge of being productive again, that investors’ confidence is now on the upswing as liquidity in the forex market has brought about clarity in policy direction.
Muda Yusuf, director-general, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) noted that the foreign exchange policy has helped to reduce the volatilities in the forex market and minimise uncertainties.
He therefore commended the CBN for the prompt interventions in the forex market, adding that this renewed effort of intervention is better than when there was forex scarcity in the country.
He also commended the Federal government on its recent initiatives on the Ease of Doing Business, adding that this would positively impact on the economy.
“We commend the various policy measures put in place to improve the business environment. We applauded the executive orders and the acts on the movable collateral and credit registry. These initiatives would create the right environment for business and boost investors’ confidence,” the director-general said.
On enabling legislation, the LCCI helmsman said that LCCI also applauded the national assembly on the efforts at providing enabling legislations to boost the inflows of private sector capital to complement the capital budget spending of the government especially on infrastructure.
“The recent Business Environment forum between the national assembly and the private sector on legislations would boost private investment in the economy,” he added.
He however, enjoined government to do something about the current liquidity squeeze in the economy, which has reduced buying power and raised inventories in manufacturing concerns.
Other analysts are hopeful that the assent to the 2017 budget and its subsequent implementation would improve cash flow in the economy.