The federal government says it will pin down Ways and Means advances to deal with the problem of too much liquidity in the system to stem inflation.
Wale Edun minister of finance and co-ordinating minister of
the economy, spoke to journalists in Washington DC, United States, shortly
after a meeting with investors at the on-going spring meetings of the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.
He told the global gathering that the current
administration, led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is fully determined to “pin
down” Ways and Means to alleviate the pressure of the excess money in the
system.
The minister said the fiscal and monetary authorities are
also working towards bringing down inflation.
“The two authorities
are working hand in hand to bring down inflation and pressure on price
stability and stabilising the exchange rate with the target of bringing down
interest rates so that investors can borrow at a more affordable rate with a
view to getting the economy going the right direction again,” Edun said.
“We need to borrow less and focus more on domestic resource
mobilisation. We want long-term resources to avoid repayment and refinancing
pressures.”
Speaking on food security, Edun said the present
administration is dealing with the problem in order to provide farmers’ with
access to their farms, especially in parts of the country where insecurity has
played a major role in reducing food production.
Edun added that agro clusters are being developed in
collaboration with the African Development Bank (AfDB) to increase food
production in the country.
Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria
(CBN); Lydia Shehu Jafiya, permanent secretary, federal ministry of finance,
and Zainab Ahmed, former minister of finance, were some of the top government
officials who attended the meeting.
On February 9, Cardoso had said the CBN would halt its Ways
and Means advances to the federal government.
He said the apex bank would no longer be a part of the Ways
and Means agreement with the federal government until all outstanding debts are
refunded.
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