NIGERIA – The Central Bank of Nigeria says it will support the agriculture sector, the Small and Medium Enterprises, and infrastructure development to stimulate the economy.
The Deputy Governor (Corporate Services), Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Edward Adamu, said this during a finance seminar, while speaking on the theme, ‘Galvanising development finance and monetary policy for growth.’
“It is pertinent to note that at the Central Bank of Nigeria, our approach to stimulating economic development is three-pronged, centered on agriculture, micro, small and medium enterprises and infrastructure,” he said.
He noted that the theme of the seminar was relevant, considering the evolving interconnectedness between development finance and monetary policy, not only in Nigeria, but in other economies across the world.
The bank, he added, had transcended its core mandate of maintaining monetary, price and financial system stability, to undertake developmental initiatives with a view to spurring economic growth and job creation.
He mentioned its efforts at these development finance initiatives had helped to accelerate the actualisation of the Federal Government’s economic diversification programme.
“Diversifying our economic base presents a more sustainable and stable option,” he said.
During the last five years the exports of Nigeria have decreased at an annualized rate of -17.4%, from $122B in 2012 to $46.8B in 2017.
This has been largely due to the drop-in oil prices- which account for almost 76% of total exports- from a high of US$100 in 2012 to lows of US$58 per barrel in 2018.
To drive economic growth, the government has shifted its focus to more promising ventures in agricultural sector and manufacturing sector.
The deputy governor said he had the conviction that focusing the developmental efforts on sectors with inherent potential for growth, employment and accretion to foreign reserves, would enhance the fortune of the Nigerian economy.
To realise economic diversification, CBN has so far increased its lending to the agricultural and manufacturing sectors, through targeted intervention schemes such as the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme, Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme and the Real Sector Support Facility.
