Business
MAN Tasks CBN On Monetary Policy Failures To Curb Inflation
The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) says that the Monetary Policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has failed to curb the rising inflation in the economy.
The Association, therefore, urges the apex bank to think outside the conventional monetary policy framework and take pragmatic steps to quell the inflationary pressure and reposition the economy.
Reacting today, to the CBN’s Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) which raised to 18.5 percent in May 2023 from 18 percent, MAN said : ” This MPR increase is the 7th in a trend and the inflation rate continues to rise despite the increases.
Segun Ajayi-Kadir, its Director-General, said that this is a clear indication that the policy tightening is not effective in curbing the inflationary pressures and more needed to be done.
What Should Be Done?
” It is evident that the continuous and consistent increase in MPR is not yielding the desired growth in the economy.
” The Nigerian economy remains fragile and bedeviled with numerous challenges that inhibit growth. Therefore, the monetary authority needs to pay closer attention to rethink the policy mix, bearing in mind the parlous state of the economy, especially the effect of a high MPR on the manufacturing sector and the economy.
The increase in MPR from 18% to 18.5% will certainly lead to an increase in lending rates and worsen the uncompetitiveness of the manufacturing sector.
The Association has been clamoring for single-digit lending rates to allow manufacturers access needed funds to boost the performance of the sector.
This increase, like the previous ones, is evidence that the CBN is either unperturbed about the plight of the productive sector or is unable to fathom out a more creative policy mix that would reflate the sector.
We are persuaded that monetary authority is oblivious of the fact that the failure of its tightening policy to address the inflationary pressure is because the hike in inflation is largely caused by a combination of familiar challenges, including low output which is attributed to instability of macroeconomic variables, inconsistent and lackluster fiscal policy regime, incoherent industrial policies, challenging and expensive operating environment, exploitative regulation, external shocks and poor exchange rate management.
Therefore, there is a need to address the identified root causes of inflation and refrain from intensifying policy choices that hamper the performance of the real sectors of the economy.
Interrelationship Among Interest Rate, Inflation Rate and Exchange Rate
The movements of interest rate, inflation rate and exchange rate have direct impact on investment, employment and output of any economy.
In the conventional monetary framework that was adopted by the CBN, increase in MPR should increase interest rate and by extension attract financial investment.
However, it will also increase the cost of borrowing, crowd out more investments in the real sector and lower the output of the manufacturing sector, ” said the Director-General.
Business
Truecaller adds travel eSIM to portfolio
COO at Truecaller, Fredrik Kjell, said that the launch marks Truecaller’s move into mobile data services, broadening the platform beyond caller ID and spam protection, and for the first time adding digital consumables to the portfolio.
Truecaller has launched travel eSIM in Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, Malaysia, and 25 other countries, saying it is to deepen global communications among people by dismantling fetters occasioned by location.
COO at Truecaller, Fredrik Kjell, said that the launch marks Truecaller’s move into mobile data services, broadening the platform beyond caller ID and spam protection, and for the first time adding digital consumables to the portfolio.
Travel eSIM is also currently available to purchase in Italy, Sweden, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Romania, the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, Austria, Finland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland, Norway, Chile and Indonesia.
The leading global platform for verifying contacts and blocking unwanted communication, has 500 million people already on its platform with their daily communication.
Travel eSIM extends that relationship to international travel – a category where users routinely overpay for connectivity or arrive at their destination disconnected.
Travel eSIM is a fully digital mobile data service that activates in minutes and offers plans from 1 GB over seven days to 20 GB over 30 days. Customers can buy travel eSIM in 29 markets at launch, through the Truecaller iPhone app or on the web at Truecaller.com.
Business
Nigeria’s external debt: Tinubu’s borrowing in 24 months surpasses 55 years record
He revealed that, with Nigeria’s total public debt of N159.28 trillion as of April 2026, according to the Debt Management Office, every Nigerian owes N670,000, lamenting the rapid expansion of Nigeria’s debt profile in recent years.
” The N65.9 trillion borrowed by the administration of President Bola Tinubu in the last 24 months is more than five times the total debt Nigeria incurred in the first 55 years of its Independence.”
This observation was made by Chairman of the Alliance for Economic Research and Ethics LTD/GTE, Dele Oye.
Oye, who is the immediate past chairman of the Organised Private Sector of Nigeria (OPSN), noted that while successive governments accumulated debt over decades, the Tinubu administration alone added N65.9 trillion in two years, compared to just N12 trillion accumulated over 55 years.
He revealed that, with Nigeria’s total public debt of N159.28 trillion as of April 2026, according to the Debt Management Office, every Nigerian owes N670,000, lamenting the rapid expansion of Nigeria’s debt profile in recent years.
Oye cautioned that unless urgent measures are taken to strengthen revenue generation and fiscal discipline, the rising debt burden could place long-term pressure on public finances and constrain government spending on critical sectors.
Cast your mind back to 2006. Nigeria had just pulled off one of the most celebrated fiscal feats in African history. President Olusegun Obasanjo paid $12 billion to extinguish $30 billion in Paris Club debt. Nigeria was, briefly, externally debt-free. The Excess Crude Account (ECA) was flush. The future looked fundable. Twenty years later, that golden moment reads like a fairy tale. Under President Goodluck Jonathan, debt crept back to N12.06 trillion by 2015, manageable, but the warning signs were already blinking. Then came the Buhari years.
“In eight years, the debt exploded from N12.06 trillion to N87.38 trillion, a 620 percent increase. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was pressed into printing money through ‘Ways and Means’ advances; N23.7 trillion of this was eventually securitised into long-term bonds, effectively converting a government overdraft into a generational liability.
“Tinubu’s administration has added a further N65.9 trillion in just two years. To put that in perspective: it took Nigeria’s first 55 years of independence to accumulate N12 trillion in debt. The present administration has added more than five times that amount in 24 months,” said Oye.
Business
Gas Marketers pleads for FG intervention over soaring price for common Nigerians
NALPGAM National President, Mr. Edu Inyang, said that cooking gas now sells between N1, 500 and N1, 700 per kilogram, the current situation has placed millions of households, food vendors, small businesses and low-income earners under severe pressure, as many Nigerians can no longer afford cooking gas for daily use.
The Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM) has appealed to the Federal Government to urgently intervene and stabilise the supply and pricing of cooking gas inoder to prevent further hardships on Nigerians.
NALPGAM National President, Mr. Edu Inyang, said that cooking gas now sells between N1, 500 and N1, 700 per kilogram, the current situation has placed millions of households, food vendors, small businesses and low-income earners under severe pressure, as many Nigerians can no longer afford cooking gas for daily use.
He disclosed that marketers pay between N25.2 million and N26.2 million for a 20-metric-tonne truck of liquefied petroleum gas, depending on location.
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