Experts support reforms to lift private sector, attract FDI
Experts in Nigerian economy has called on the government to enhance erase of doing business through enthroning private sector driven policy regime, friendly monetary policy and harmonized foreign exchange rate, to spur market driven economic development.
The trio of Mr. Ike Chioke, Group Managing Director, Afrinvest West Africa Limited, Mr. Muda Yusuf, Director General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and foremost Economist, Mr. Abiodun Adedipe, CEO Adedipe & Co, at a recent economic roundtable organized by a Television station monitored by Daily Times Nigeria were of the consensus that private sector holds the potential to generate the highly needed funds to drive the nation’s economic development with enabling policies and macro/micro economic supportive climates in place..
Ike Chioke, who x-rayed the impact of conflicting exchange rates on the economy and economic development, pointed that the low exchange rate of N305 per dollar, is purely based on political considerations as doing otherwise will impact negatively on the overall economic development target of the government.
“These are political considerations, the N305 exchange rate is based on current price of PMS, if they drive it higher, and it affects other facets of the economy, including the subsidy oil price arrangement”
He said that the government need to further enhance business environment for private sector to grow to be structurally better positioned to drive effort at raising infrastructural development funds needed to drive the economy and 2018 budget.
“We need to do more reforms to attract more FDIs, because all the FDIs you see here today and exit within a short time and that is why we need more reforms to lift private sector and further enhance foreign capital inflow into the country.”
The Director General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Mr. Muda Yusuf during a television program on the expected result of the MPC committee meeting, monitored by Daily Times Nigeria, said that the economy need to be driven by policies that supports sector capital.
According to him, private sector capital is needed to drive the economy and that dependent on government’s revenue or the 30 per cent budgeted for capital expenditure, would not be relied upon to attain the expected result in boosting economy.
Yusuf recalls that the 2018 budget proposal shows 8 per cent of the nation’s makes up the GDP adding that the GDP can be raised through active participation of the private sector, to be driven by policy initiatives that support both local investments as well as foreign Direct Investments (FDIs).
He emphasized that capital expenditure as targeted by the government in the budget breakdown cannot make the required impact, adding that such huge expected in the economy could be derived from the private sector.
“Monetary policy could also be proactive, looking out towards easing the challenges in doing business ties to rats that encourage development of local businesses as well as forex regime that encourages private sector growth.”
“More investments can increase output and more outputs can also increase inflation rates, disparity rate in foreign exchange is challenging.”
Stories by Bonny Amadi
