Chidi Samuel
In its efforts to ensure that manufacturers of goods for which Nigeria does not enjoy comparative advantage were able to get letters of credit to import the required materials that will help boost the productive capacity of the economy, the Central Bank of Nigeria on Thursday disclosed that it disbursed the sum of $2.83bn worth of foreign exchange between December 2016 and January 2017 for the importation of various types of equipment in the real sector of the economy.
The Acting Director, Corporate Communications Department, CBN, Mr Isaac Okoroafor, who confirmed the development explained that manufacturing, raw material, and agriculture among others got the highest amount, adding that this was done by the apex bank as part of its measures to create jobs, reduce the level of poverty and ensure inclusive growth in the economy.
The breakdown of the forex allocation, showed that $609m and $228m were released for raw materials in the months of December and January respectively, while manufacturing got $53m and $71m respectively during the same period.
He said, “The Central Bank of Nigeria has disbursed the sum of $2.83bn for utilisation in the critical sectors of the economy between December 2016 and January 2017.
“Manufacturing, raw material and agriculture among others topped these disbursements targeted at employment generating and wealth-creating sectors of the economy.
Mr Okorafor therefore urged manufacturers to take advantage of the policy, which he noted was part of efforts by the CBN to ensure that Nigeria reclaims its status as a major producer through backward integration.
