Lawmakers and financial analysts are raising alarms over Nigeria’s monetary policy direction, as debates intensify about the efficacy of sustained high interest rates and recent statistical revisions.
At a parliamentary session in Abuja, the House of Representatives Committee on National Planning and Economic Development cautioned the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that its aggressive monetary tightening risks harming vital sectors of the economy.
Committee Chairman Gboyega Nasiru underscored these concerns during a dialogue with Adeyemi Adeniran, head of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), ahead of the CBN’s landmark 300th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting next week.
“While the Tinubu administration’s reforms have stabilized macroeconomics, revived investor trust, and propelled market growth—with the capital market doubling in two years and foreign reserves hitting a three-year peak—persistent high rates threaten to cripple manufacturing, agriculture, and SMEs,” Nasiru stated. These sectors, he emphasized, are pivotal for job creation.
The warning comes as Nigeria’s inflation climbed to 24.23% in March 2024, with April’s figures pending release. Meanwhile, financial analyst Arume Tsekiri questioned whether the NBS’s recent overhaul of the Consumer Price Index (CPI)—reducing the weight of food and non-alcoholic beverages from 51.8% to 40%—might be skewing inflation data.
“Though methodologically sound, the rebasing risks muddying inflation narratives and influencing policy decisions based on flawed interpretations,” Tsekiri warned.
Adeniran, Nigeria’s Statistician-General, revealed that youth unemployment stands at 6.5%, with 12.5% of young people classified as NEET (not in employment, education, or training). He added that Q3 and Q4 2024 economic reports are nearing publication.
The CBN has held its benchmark rate at 27.5% since February 2025, pursuing what it calls a “tight monetary stance” to rein in inflation. However, the World Bank’s latest Nigeria Development Update projects inflation to ease only marginally to 22.1% by 2025, suggesting prolonged economic pressure.
As policymakers brace for critical decisions, the balancing act between curbing inflation and safeguarding growth grows ever more delicate.
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