Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, has disagreed with the position of vice president Yemi Osinbajo that there is lack of synergy between fiscal and monetary authorities in the country’s foreign exchange regime.
Osinbajo had expressed concern that the monetary policies were competing with the fiscal side in Nigeria and advised the CBN to review its policy.
But Emefiele, speaking with Arise TV on the sidelines of the recently concluded Nigeria International Partnership Forum in Paris, said “the way people come up and say there is no synergy, again, I wonder where that is coming from.”
“However, let me say this, when COVID hit, Mr. President asked the finance minister and I to work together to bring out some immediate response and I went back to the bankers’ committee and we came up with an immediate response.
“And the finance minister and I had several opportunities, several times to go back to brief the president.”
Emefiele said President Muhammadu Buhari directed the CBN to help create an economic recovery programme.
“After that, the president said that we should establish the national economic sustainability programme group chaired by the Vice-president,” he said.
The governor said that the CBN had discharged its duties, contributing a larger quota to the successful implementation of the programme.
“The Central Bank played an active role in the development of that programme to the extent that the fiscal authorities were only meant to contribute N500 billion and the monetary authorities were left to provide about N1.5 trillion,” he pointed out.
“Please let me correct this, not as grants but as loans to support people who were impacted by COVID-19 so that they can get their business back,” Emefiele added.
