According to the Central Bank of Nigeria, the country’s inflation rate is lower than that of the majority of African countries.
This was said on Tuesday at the 2023 Zenith Bank International Trade Seminar by the acting governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Folashodun Shonubi.
The CBN’s Deputy Governor for Economic Policy, Kingsley Obiorah, spoke on behalf of Shonubi, who claimed that a number of reasons had contributed to the rise in world inflation.
While illuminating the subject of “Nigerian Non-Oil Export Industry,” Obiorah. The Civic Centre on Victoria Island in Lagos hosted the event “The Present, The Future,” which criticized the poor growth rate in the ratio of non-oil exports to GDP.
According to Obiorah, Nigeria’s inflation rate is currently at 22.8%, and the IMF anticipates a moderated growth rate of 3.2% in 2023 for the country.
“Now, when you get to Africa and the adjoining country of Ghana, the inflation rate there was 42.5% as of the most recent census. Ethiopia and Egypt both have it at 31% and 36%, respectively.
“So, in our beloved nation, we are at 22.8%. These numbers indicate that things aren’t as bad as they seem, but economic growth has also been impacted by all of this. The IMF today reduced growth estimates from 3.5% to 3% for this year and 3% for the following year.”
He said, “They estimate growth in Sub-Saharan Africa to slow from 4.1% last year to 3.5% this year, but to pick back up to just over 4% next year. In Nigeria, they anticipate that we will achieve 3.2% this year.
He also claimed that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, two major exporters of commodities, is having a significant impact. 30% of all sunflower exports worldwide come from the two of them. You can therefore predict what would happen to food costs around the world when such a region is at war.
The high rate of investment in property services in China, according to the economic policy expert, has also caused supply chain problems.
He said, “Nigeria’s non-oil exports to GDP ratio in the decade between 2001 and 2011 was 0.8%. You may assume that in the following ten years, from 2012 to 2022, we remained at 1.2%, indicating an increase of 0.4% over that time.
“We need to expand much more quickly. Countries that are smaller than ours are doing far better, he stated.
In addition, Obiorah compared the land area of certain countries to that of Nigeria, noting the ratio of their non-oil exports to GDP.
“The Netherlands has a land area of 34,000 square kilometers,” he stated.
“So, when water is added, you reach 42,000. You might find it interesting to know that 29% of the Netherlands’ GDP comes from non-oil exports. They typically export $108 billion of non-oil goods.
“Remember that the Netherlands is essentially the same size as Niger State, but it is smaller. I’ll give you one more illustration. Ireland, a nation of just 70,000 square kilometers, regularly exports goods worth $170 billion that isn’t made of oil so we can do better.”
