Business

Stable Exchange Rate, Best Choice For Nigeria – Emefiele

Published

8 years ago

October 15, 2018

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, says maintaining stable exchange rate to avoid depreciation of the Naira is better than building foreign reserve buffers.
Emefiele told newsmen yesterday that this was part of the outcome of the Nigerian delegation’s meetings with investors and institutions at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group (WBG) annual meetings in Bali.
He said that all frontiers and developing markets have suffered not just depreciation, but had also lost reserves.
“We are very conscious of the need to build buffers but unfortunately I must say that we are in the period where it will be difficult to talk about building reserve buffers.
“We can only build reserve buffers if we want to hold on to the reserve and then allow the currency to go, and wherever it goes is something else.
“So it is a choice we have to make and at this time the choice for Nigeria is to maintain a stable exchange rate so that businesses can plan and we do not create problems in the banking system assets.”
According to him, like other emerging market nations, Nigeria has also lost reserves but only marginally because it had managed to sustain stability in its foreign exchange market.
The CBN governor said that the IMF and the World Bank advised that nations should build country specific policies and fiscal and structural reforms that would boost economic growth.
Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, said the World Bank’s Human Capital Development Index (HCI) ranking, which placed Nigeria low at 44 per cent on stunting, was disheartening and depressing.
She, however, said that the Federal Government saw the rating as a wake-up call.
“We admit that this pervasive action was due to long years of under-investment in human capital, which we have before now realised and for which we have been addressing.
“Apart from major policy actions, some decisive actions are being taken to address the situation.”
According to her, the delegation held meetings with the two rating agencies-Fitch and Moody’s and presented to them the summary and synopsis of the recent economic and financial developments in Nigeria.
She added that it was an opportunity for the rating agencies to be able to objectively evaluate Nigeria’s credit.
Ahmed said she also met the IMF Managing Director, Ms Christine Lagarde and discussed Nigeria’s economy in view of the 2019 general elections.
She assured Lagarde that the election year would not pose any threat to the nation’s economic prospects.
Minister of Budget and National Planning, Mr Udoma Udo Udoma, said that to improve HCI, the nation had improved budgetary allocation to health and education.
He said that allocation to education moved from N22.5 billion in 2015 to N102.9 billion in 2018.
He added that allocation to health was reviewed from N26.6 billion in 2015 to N86.49 billion in 2018.
He said also that N55.19 billion had been added to the health budget in 2018 through the National Health Act.

Business

NIWA Harps On Avoidance Of Leaking Boats

Published

4 hours ago

June 12, 2026

The Tide

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has advised Nigerians against boarding boats that require constant bailing of water in the interest of their safety.

NIWA Area Manager for Cross River and Ebonyi, Mr Stanley Onuoha gave this warning in an interview with Newsmen in Calabar.

Onuoha who spoke on waterway

safety, said that passengers should take responsibility for their safety by inspecting boats before embarking on any journey.

According to him, repeated scooping of water from a boat is a clear indication that the vessel may be leaking.

“If you are entering a boat and see people using a bailer to remove water, it is the first signal that the boat is leaking,” he said.

He urged passengers to check the integrity of boats, including seating arrangements and other visible safety features.

The Manager restated the importance of using safety jackets, saying that damaged jackets may fail during emergencies.

He further said that passengers should ensure that safety jackets were appropriate for their body sizes in order to guarantee effective flotation.

Onuoha reiterated the need for passengers to fill manifests before departure to aid accountability during emergencies.

The NIWA official further advised travellers to monitor weather conditions and avoid boarding boats when the weather is unfavourable.

According to him, poor weather conditions can trigger strong tidal waves capable of affecting small boats commonly used on inland waterways.

He said that waterway journeys should be embarked upon between 6.00a.m and 6.00p.m for clearer visibility.

Onuoha said the Authority had continued to sensitise riverine communities to the need for safety precautions during waterway journeys.

He stated that sustained awareness campaigns and enforcement measures had contributed to safety waterway safety in Cross River.

CHINEDU WOSU

Business

N77.3bn Customs Revenue Underscores Eastern Ports Economic Importance -ANLCA

Published

4 hours ago

June 12, 2026

The Tide

The Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Onne Seaport Chapter, has described the record-breaking N77.3 billion revenue generated by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Onne Command in April 2026 as a strong indication of growing economic activities across Nigeria’s eastern maritime corridor.

Chairman of ANLCA, Onne Chapter, Mr. Ifeanyi Isikaku, said this during a courtesy visit by executives of the Coalition of Maritime Journalists Association of Nigeria (COMJAN) to the association in Onne, recently.

Isikaku said the impressive revenue performance reflected increased vessel traffic, improved port operations and rising commercial activities at the Onne Port complex, which continues to attract major shipping lines and cargo volumes.

He noted that terminals within the port, particularly the West Africa Container Terminal (WACT), have witnessed steady patronage from large container vessels carrying hundreds of containers on weekly schedules.

According to him, some vessels arriving at the terminal berth with between 500 and 800 containers, adding that the port had at certain periods accommodated as many as four large vessels simultaneously.

The ANLCA chairman said the development demonstrates the enormous potentials of eastern ports in contributing significantly to national revenue generation and economic growth if provided with the necessary infrastructure and policy support.

He maintained that the increasing volume of maritime businesses in the region justifies renewed calls for greater Federal Government investment in roads, logistics facilities and port infrastructure to enhance operational efficiency.

Isikaku also urged maritime journalists to sustain objective and proactive report of activities within the sector, stressing that accurate information dissemination remains vital to the growth of the nation’s maritime industry.

He encouraged media practitioners to pay closer attention to developments at ports in Onne, Rivers, Warri and Calabar, noting such coverage would help to draw attention to the opportunities and challenges facing the eastern maritime axis.

The Nigeria Customs Service, Onne Area Command, had recently announced a record revenue collection of N77.3 billion for April 2026, describing it as the highest monthly revenue generated in the history of the command.

Customs Area Comptroller of the command, Aliyu Mohammed Alkali, disclosed that the command generated a cumulative revenue of N258.2 billion within the review period, underscoring the growing capacity of the port to support national economic objectives.

President of COMJAN, Mr. Ralph John, assured stakeholders of the association’s commitment to promoting responsible maritime journalism and fostering collaboration with industry players, while urging stakeholders to regard journalists as partners in development rather than adversaries.

King Onunwor

Business

RIVERS NDC STANDARD BEARER CAUTIONS AGAINST TRIBAL POLITICS IN 2027

Published

4 days ago

June 8, 2026

The Tide

Governorship candidate of The National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Rivers State, Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, has called on politicians and other stakeholders in the state not to make the governorship seat of Rivers State an ethnic agenda.

Chief Lulu-Briggs, who said this in an interview with newsmen shortly after arrival from Abuja, also blamed the alleged unenviable position of Rivers State among the comity of states in the country on the political class.

He said stakeholders must avoid a situation where the state would be plunged into another round of political crisis, adding that given the ethnic and cultural diversity of the state, it was necessary to give everyone a sense of inclusion by ensuring that the governorship seat rotates among the ethnic nationalities.

The NDC governorship flag bearer condemned the alleged intimidation of the electorate, noting that the situation has underdeveloped the state.

He said, if elected, his administration would provide the democratic dividends that will improve the lives of the people.

In a similar development, the state chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Rivers State, Mr Success Jack, says his party will run an all inclusive government in the state.

Mr Jack, who spoke to newsmen in Port Harcourt, promised that an NDC controlled government will always consult with the people before taking any decisions.

According to him, based on his party’s ideology of “Solid, Strong Accommodating”, the NDC offers hope to the hopeless and the downtrodden.

“We assure you that we are fully ready. Our party is a platform that is open to everybody whether APC or PDP, we offer hope. Our ideology is Solid, Strong, Accommodating. The manifesto of our party is anchored on the ideology of providing genuine service to the people”.

Mr Jack also stressed that the policies of an NDC government would be crafted in such a way and manner that serves the primary and secondary interests of the people.

“This is not what you find in other parties.What you find in other parties is utmost impunity, absolute impunity, where the people are not included, they are not consulted and so their opinion does not count, they don’t know what government wants to do because they didn’t contribute to what government wants to do.

“That’s not the case here. We listen to the people, even provide the way forward, (and) the details for the way forward because we provide the framework as a government but the people will provide the details because they are the ones that wear the shoes and they know where it pinches them”, he said.

By: John Bibor