The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has announced that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the CBN has retained the monetary policy rate at 11.5 percent.
Emefiele told journalists on Tuesday in Abuja after the two-day meeting of the MPC that the MPR was left unchanged at 11.5 percent, while the Cash Reserve Ratio and Liquidity Ratio were left at 27.5 percent and 30 percent respectively.
According to Emefiele, the move is expected to allow further economic growth, after the country exited recession in the fourth quarter of 2020, amid rising inflation.
He said that the MPC was worried over the effect of insecurity on the Nigerian economy and urged the Nigerian Government to tackle insecurity immediately in order to successfully check the rising inflation.
Speaking on the devastating effects of the Coronavirus pandemic on the economy, Emefiele said that the MPC advised against another total lockdown, warning that it would reverse most of the economic gains made in the country since the gradual reopening of the economy.
Local media reports quoted Emefiele as saying that the MPC stressed the need for vaccination and stated that about 70% of Nigeria’s population should be vaccinated to achieve economic recovery.
GIK/APA