Edo State governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has argued that the current policies of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) cannot promote the needed economic growth of the country.
Obaseki specifically said the high interest rates introduced by the apex bank would continually hinder Nigeria’s economic growth, as small business proprietors cannot access loans.
He also faulted the rationale behind increasing monetary policy rate, as the country does not need exchange rates to survive.
Obaseki made this known during an event organised at the weekend by the Edo Zone of Bankers’ Committee in Benin City.
He said: “Policies that have just been rolled out by the central bank, unfortunately, will not support the growth of our economy.
“Interest rates are already very high, and jerking up interest rates clearly will not allow small borrowers, small businesses to have access to credit at the price to help them grow their businesses. When an economy is in this state, it meets all the push and support.”
The governor stated that the Federal government and the leadership of the CBN should engage in indigenous policies to promote job opportunities for youths and transform the country into productivity.
He said: “I understand the monetary rationale for increasing MPR fundamentally and fiscally, it is not going to lead to growth in our economy. We must focus on the fundamentals, which are increasing production, making sure our citizens produce goods and services we consume, and depend less on imports.
“Our economic policy and monetary policy cannot be determined by exchange rate alone, so the issue of increasing cash reserves in the bid to tighten the liquidity is going to be detrimental to our economy.
“I understand the challenge the monetary authorities face, but unfortunately, you cannot clap with one hand. The economy is about fiscal and monetary policies – both must work hand-in-hand and when they don’t as they don’t in Nigeria, there can be a crisis.
“We should focus on fiscal issues so that we can grow our economy out of the challenges we had. We should not panic too much because of foreign exchange. We must focus on how we can do things within our economy, and how we can grow our economy and earn more foreign exchange if foreign exchange is our problem, but I believe creating jobs for young people should be more of a priority for us as people at this time.”