According to the pan-Nigerian Social Workers organization Afenifere,high inflation and rising rates of poverty are two of the main issues facing Nigerians, and have urged the government to reconsider its economic policies.
The group Afenifere cautioned that the existing economic turmoil may remain if the Federal Government does not adjust its current economic policies during the first year of its scorecard review. The release was signed by Prince Justice Faloye, the group’s publicity secretary.
It stated that in the following years, the populace would become even poorer.
The committee recommended that the administration of President Bola Tinubu take into consideration the aspirations of the populace and improve their situation.
It said that throughout Tinubu’s one-year rule, the economy had seen extreme volatility.
According to the group, raising interest rates will not stop inflation because, in addition to the government’s reckless spending, the loans that the restrictive policies withhold from the private sector end up flowing to it and are then pounded back into the markets.
Remember that at his inauguration speech on May 29, 2023, President Bola Tinubu declared the elimination of gasoline subsidies.
The local currency fell from N463.38/$ on June 9 to N632.77/$ at the official forex market as a result of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s announcement on June 14, 2023, about the unification of all segments of the FX exchange market.
On May 27, the naira dropped even further to N1,482.63.
Afenifere emphasized that those restrictions were preventing much-needed financing from reaching the economically productive areas of the economy.
What they’re saying
“First of all, the notion that tax rises and the elimination of subsidies, which take money out of the economy, will promote economic growth is an irrational one. Because they invariably cause the economy to contract, the acceptance of faulty neo-liberal doctrines about eliminating subsidies and raising taxes without limits must be prevented.
This is not an exception, as businesses are closing their doors and moving elsewhere as a result of the exorbitant expenses of fuel and electricity, which are driving up inflation and real income declines.”
“ Additionally, the Central Bank of Nigeria increased the Cash Reserve Ratio from 32.5 percent to 45 percent a year ago”
Bottom Line
In order to curb the startling rates of inflation, devaluation, unemployment, homelessness, and poverty, Afenifere demanded a deeper understanding of the economy.
