CBN will not hesitate to deploy measures to boost Nigerian economy — Emefiele

The Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefuele has said that the Apex bank will not hesitate to deploy measures to strengthen the country’s economic status.

Speaking at a one-day roundtable session tagged “Going For Growth 2:0”, organised by the CBN in Abuja on Wednesday, Emefiele said the spread of the coronavirus emerged as a major threat to global growth in 2020.

He said that the impact of COVID-19 across over 100 countries has affected global supply chains, as well as demand for goods and services.

Emefiele noted that while measures are being taken by fiscal authorities to build resilient buffers to contain the spread of the viru, the CBN fortunately had already embarked on similar measures which has resulted in significant reduction in lending rates, as part of our efforts to boost growth.

on diversification of the economy, he said: “Our dependence on oil exports contributed to the decline of our local industries as well as our agricultural sector, as it enabled an excessive reliance on the imports of goods and services.

“This reliance on imports contributed significantly to the challenges we now face in our agricultural and manufacturing sectors, but more importantly, it resulted in the loss of job opportunities for Nigerians.

“Our craze for imports of everything and anything supported factories, farms and the creation of jobs in other nations, while turning our industries into warehouses for these imported goods.”

He said findings generated from the roundtable session, will be presented to Nigerian Ruler, Muhammadu Buhari at a dinner session later today.