The presidency has revelaed that President Ahmed Bola Tinubu’s administration is actively formulating policies aimed at bolstering the strength of the naira, Nigeria’s currency.
Dr. Tope Fasua, the Special Adviser to the President on Economic Matters, made this revelation during the “Cowries to Cash” lecture and luncheon held in Abuja on Tuesday.
Recent days have seen a consistent upturn in the naira’s value, and Fasua emphasized that this positive trend is expected to persist, and will be driven by government policies.
He conveyed the notion that a currency’s decline in value is a sign of vulnerability, adding, “When you want to destroy a country, destroy its currency first.”
Fausa also cautioned individuals who are stockpiling foreign currencies, hoping that the local currency will continue to depreciate, warning them that government policies will catch them by surprise.
Representing Vice President Kashim Shettima at the event, Fasua stated, “For those who are speculating and praying and wishing that the currency would become nonsense, I believe that the policies are being rolled out by the central bank and the government that I serve, led by the president, will shock some of them.”
He further revealed that the president has set ambitious targets, including elevating Nigeria’s economy to a trillion dollars by 2026.
Fasua expressed optimism that the naira might even strengthen further, possibly reaching a rate of 500 or 600.
In his keynote address at the event, Dr. Olayemi Cardoso, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), represented by Mustapha Haruna, the Director of Banking Supervision, acknowledged the economic challenges facing the country, stemming from various macroeconomic issues related to the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.
He highlighted the significance of the book “Cowries to Cashless,” which chronicles the transformative journey of the CBN’s history, particularly in terms of the remarkable evolution of the Nigerian payment system over the past few decades.
Princess Iphie, the author and Executive Director of Asher Global Treasures, stressed the importance of understanding the past and present in shaping the future.
She stated, “If you don’t know what yesterday was and you don’t know what is today, definitely you will not know what tomorrow will be. So, we started from Cowries to Manillas and then other ones before we started with the exchange of goods and then this is where we are right now – the technological age and loads of innovation.”
