Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, has assured Nigerians that the country’s inflation rate will decline despite the growing costs of food and other necessities.
Gatekeepers News reports that the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Nigeria’s inflation increased for 11 straight months, peaking in December 2023.
In December, the annual inflation rate rose from 28.20 per cent in November to 28.92 per cent.
During the House of Representatives’ sectoral discussion on the economy, Cardoso, however, told members that inflation would drop to 21%.
The governor of the CBN, while providing an outlook for 2024, said, “Inflationary pressures are expected to decline in 2024 due to the CBN’s inflationary targeting policy aiming to rein in inflation to 21.4 per cent, aided by improved agricultural productivity and easy global supply chain pressures.
“The Nigerian foreign exchange market is currently facing increased demand pressures causing a continuous decrease in the value of naira.”
He explained that the apex bank has announced plans to deal with the ongoing depreciation of the naira.
According to him, the economy needs export revenue to strengthen the naira.
The CBN governor stated that the apex bank intends to foster trust by maintaining stability in the foreign currency market and consumer pricing.
In his opinion, the CBN’s policy initiatives will have a positive effect on inflation.
Other key officials at the House of Representatives include; the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; Minister of Budget and National Planning, Abubakar Bagudu and the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Zacch Adedeji.
