BEVERLY HILLS, JULY 29, (THEWILL) – Erstwhile Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr. Tunde Lemo, has told Nigerians to expect further contraction in economic activities this year, predicting that the impact of the projected shrinkage would be particularly felt across the major sectors of the economy.
In view of this, he called on the Federal Government to intensify efforts towards diversifying the economy. A statement issued on Thursday reports Lemo as disclosing this at the 61st Annual National Convention of the Foursquare Gospel Church, which was chaired by a former Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Britain, Dr. Christopher Kolade.
Speaking at the event themed: ‘The Nigerian Economy: The past, present and the future’ at the Foursquare National Headquarters in Lagos, Lemo said it was regrettable that despite the progress made by the country on the political front, available indices “have unveiled the painful lopsidedness of Nigeria’s economic prosperity.”
The former CBN chief was quoted as saying, “Nigeria economic activities are expected to shrink by 1.8 per cent in 2016 in a bid to adjust to foreign currency shortages as a result of lower oil receipts, low power generation and weak investors’ confidence. These will affect the major sectors of the economy.
“We need to key into ways to reform the economy and drive toward diversification.”
He noted that the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP, had shrinked by -0.36 per cent in the first quarter of this year, which he said was “a likely indication that the economy would record another negative growth in the second quarter.
“The country has been badly hit by unemployment rate at 12.1 per cent with exports dropping by 34.6 per cent, while imports declined by 7.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2016,” he observed.
The ex-CBN deputy governor harped on the need for Nigerians to demand an urgent diversification of the economy from the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
“The present administration advocated for anti-corruption and economic reform during the past election, but it has not succeeded in proving to Nigerians and the world its capacity to bring about economic reformation. Its major headache lies in how to rejig the Nigerian economy and set it back on a growth trajectory.
“We have to insist on economic reform and diversification to revamp the economy, because it can help to deliver inclusive growth in the system,” he averred.
Noting that Nigeria had slid into an economic recession, Lemo explained that a country would be in a recession when it records two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth as measured by its GDP.
“The country is economic is in recession. What we need now is massive fiscal policy to help revive the economy. Government has to pump more money into the economy and not just on capital projects,” he said.
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