The Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, says Nigeria’s external reserves at $35bn was sufficient to finance the country’s seven months’ imports.
According to statistics obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Monday, external reserves dropped by $1.1bn in February.
The reserves which stood at $36.19bn as of February 1 fell to $35.09bn as of February 26.
Emefiele, who spoke during the CBN/Bankers’ Committee conference on Friday, said efforts were being made to conserve the country’s foreign exchange.
With the decline in the foreign exchange earnings and subsequent adjustments in the value of the naira vis-à-vis the US dollar, he said the CBN had continued to implement a demand management framework.
According to him, the framework is designed to support improved production of items that can be produced in Nigeria, and further conservation the country’s external reserves.
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“These measures have helped to prevent a significant decline in our reserves,” Emefiele added.
“Our external reserves currently stand at over $35bn and is sufficient to cover more than seven months of import of goods and services, even though the international rule of thumb is for reserves to cover about three months of imports.”
At the last Monetary Policy Committee meeting, he said strong emphasis must be placed on diversifying the foreign exchange earnings, as this would help to limit the impact of low crude oil prices on the Nigerian economy.
He stated, “The CBN in this regard would be deploying part of its intervention schemes towards supporting growth in the country’s non-oil exports, along with measures to improve the flow of remittances through formal channels.”
