CBN in a major monetary policy shift, restored the 43 items which were banned from accessing forex since June 2015.
A former federal lawmaker and social critic, Senator Shehu Sani, has faulted the decision of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to lift the ban on 43 items from accessing foreign exchange.
Sani said this in a post he made on Friday via X platform (formerly Twitter) where he noted that the decision of the apex bank would only worsen the economic situation of the country.
“Lifting of the ban on importation of toothpicks, Cement and other agricultural products that we can produce at home is a disastrous economic strategy. The nation’s scarce forex should be used to support local production not importation. The new CBN Boss should think of better ways,” he said.
Recall that CBN in a major monetary policy shift, restored the 43 items which were banned from accessing forex since June 2015 in order to, according to it, “sustain the stability of the foreign exchange market and the derivation of optimum benefits from goods and services imported into the country.”
Items on the list include rice; cement; toothpicks; margarine; palm Kernel/Palm oil products/vegetable oils; meat and processed meat products; vegetables and processed vegetable products; poultry – chicken, eggs, Turkey; Soap and cosmetics; tomatoes/tomato pastes; milk; maize and tinned fish in sauce (Geisha)/Sardines.
Others are enamelware; steel drums; steel pipes; wire rods (deformed and not deformed); iron rods and reinforcing bars; wire mesh; steel balls; security and razor wire; wood particle boards and panels; wood fiber boards and panels; plywood boards and panels; wooden doors; furniture; glass and glassware; kitchen utensils; tableware; tiles – vitrified and ceramic; textiles; woven fabrics and clothes.
But eight years later, the Governor Yemi Cardoso-led apex bank lifted the ban in a statement signed by director of corporate communications, Isa AbdulMumin.
The statement had said, “Importers of all the 43 items previously restricted by the 2015 Circular referenced TED/FEM/FPC/GEN/01/010 and its addendums are now allowed to purchase foreign exchange in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market.
“The CBN reiterates that the prevailing Foreign Exchange (FX) rates should be referenced from platforms such as the CBN website, FMDQ, and other recognised or appointed trading systems to promote price discovery, transparency, and credibility in the FX rates,” the statement said.
This came amidst a worsening foreign exchange crisis with increasing margin between the official and parallel markets despite the rate unification policy.