The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reiterated that its recent
exclusion of 41 items from funding on the Nigerian Foreign Exchange
Market (interbank and BDCs) would help to grow local industries.
It also maintained that no economy is run by allocating forex for
importation, saying that such a policy would only end up destroying
infant industries in any nation.
The CBN Director, Monetary Policy, Mr. Moses Tule, made these remarks
at a Private Sector Dialogue on the new forex policy organised by the
Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) in Lagos.
Tule stressed that continuing with the previous forex regime would
deplete the nation’s forex reserves further since oil prices as well as
government revenue had declined.
“The business of macro-economic management in any country, is the
business of the fiscal authorities and the business of the monetary
authorities. So, the two key agencies of macro-economic management must
come together.
“The implication is that the central bank must do its own duty of the
job and that arm of government responsible for fiscal policy, in this
case, the Federal Ministry of Finance, must do its own part. No economy
is run by foreign exchange,” Tule insisted.
According to him, prior to recent measures by the central bank, some
manufacturers used to obtain forex from the CBN at official rate and
send the fund abroad without the intension of importing goods.
“Some importers demand for forex for items they want to buy in the next two years,” he said.
However, he explained that with the oil price down, and government
dollar-earnings declining, it can no longer be business as usual. He
said it is not only businesses that need forex, and that government also
needs forex to buy key equipment needed for infrastructural
development.
On his part, the LCCI President, Alhaji Remi Bello, said forex market
volatility has grave consequences for companies with high dollar
exposures.
“Foreign exchange volatility has posed serious challenges for planning
in many enterprises. And only recently, there was a new list of 41 items
not valid for forex. There is also the worry about the use of export
proceeds for only items valid for forex.
“However, these developments means different things to different
people. The LCCI is concerned in particular that some intermediate
products are on the list of the 41 items excluded from the forex
market,” Bello added.
He said the purpose of the gathering was to confront the CBN on some of
its forex policies as well as for stakeholders to ventilate their
concerns.
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