As long as the foreign exchange shortage remains, the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) has stated that allocating available forex to manufacturing and other productive sectors of the economy should be prioritized.
Mr. Wale Oyerinde, Director-General of NECA, recently urged a holistic and multi-pronged approach to tackling the nation’s difficulties when speaking on the condition of the Lagos economy. In a statement, he added that the federal government should stimulate the creation of modular refineries as a first step toward eliminating all subsidies.
Oyerinde said, “In the medium term, the Federal Government should, as a matter of urgency, fix the four national refineries and encourage the development of modular ones as a precursor to the total removal of fuel subsidies.”
“With over N5 trillion budgeted for subsidy payments in 2022, an amount larger than the budget for education and agriculture, this is unrealistic and unsustainable.
“Economic interventions aimed at improving living standards (to stimulate consumption) and enterprise sustainability (to promote job creation) should be implemented. While forex scarcity persists, allocation of the available forex to manufacturing and other productive sectors of the economy should be given priority.
Oyerinde said this was a better time for the government to deepen its engagement with the organized private sector, adding that the government’s efforts to salvage the economy were commendable.
” He said, “The nation is currently faced with multiple challenges.” Rising inflation, rising energy costs (aviation fuel, diesel, etc.), scarcity of forex, dwindling value of the naira, an almost comatose aviation sector, stuttering education system, rising debt, depleting foreign reserves, and rising fuel subsidy expenses, among others, threaten to lay bare the country’s economy.
“There is no better time for the government to reappraise current economic policies and deepen its engagement with the organized private sector.” While the government’s effort to salvage the economy is commendable, there is, however, a need for a more holistic approach to resuscitation the stuttering economy.
