The Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), has asked the Federal Government to address insecurity issues for the economy to thrive.
NACCIMA President, Ide Udeagbala,
said domestic food production is at risk and there is a dimension of insecurity that is contributing to rising production costs and reduced consumption of goods and services.
The chamber pointed out that Nigeria is currently facing a risk of decline due to the perception of Nigeria as having an investment climate that is unfriendly to business.
Citing recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on the decline in foreign investment by as much as 81 per cent, NACCIMA noted that a loss of Foreign Direct Investment is just one dimension in which the economy is affected by insecurity.
According to Udeagbala, the security situation in the country demands urgent and serious attention.
Udeagbala stated that these are uncertain times, necessitating the need for the Federal Government to quickly address the increasing insecurity challenges, poor infrastructure, irregular power supply and increasing inflation rates which have remained a threat to businesses and investments in the country.
Addressing the issues, according to him, will hopefully help to project the country as a safe destination for investment.
The chamber also noted that while the decision of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria to raise the Monetary Policy Rate from 13 per cent to 14 per cent is welcomed, the measure is majorly an inflation management measure and does not address the root cause of the inflation itself, which is rising food prices brought about by a number of factors, including the devaluation of the naira and the cost of energy which has affected production and transportation.
The NACCIMA president stated that as the private sector awaits the progress of the Presidential Power Initiative, immediate intervention is required in the oil and gas sector which the private sector depends on for production and transportation needs.
