The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
says Nigerians are getting poorer and that “coherent and comprehensive”
economic reforms are urgently needed in the country.
The gross domestic product report
released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday, February
27, 2018, showed that the economy recorded a growth of 0.83 percent in
2017.
The Bretton Wood institution said it
expects the government to “muddle through” in the medium term, and any
progress could also be threatened if elections next year consume
political energy and resources.
Reuters reports that the IMF said that although the outlook for growth has improved, the climate still remained challenging.
“Comprehensive and coherent economic
policies remain urgent and must not be delayed by approaching elections
and recovering oil prices,” IMF said in its annual Article IV review of
Nigeria’s economy.
“Higher oil prices would support a
recovery in 2018 but a ‘muddle-through’ outlook is projected for the
medium term under current policies, with fiscal dominance and structural
constraints leading to continuing falls in real GDP per capita.
“Further delays in policy action —
including because of pre-election pressures — can only make the
inevitable adjustment more difficult and costlier.”
The lender reteirated that Nigeria needs to simplify its complex foreign exchange system.
“Moving towards a unified exchange rate
should be pursued as soon as possible. (IMF) staff does not support the
exchange measures that have given rise to the exchange restrictions and
multiple currency practices.”
It also said that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) should stop its intervention activities in the foreign exchange market.
The CBN has been injecting money into the forex market to ease the pressure on the naira.
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