The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said it plans to revive moribund manufacturing firms in the non-oil export business through its N500 billion export stimulation facility.
CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele urged commercial banks and other members of the Bankers’ Committee to focus on initiatives that would touch the lives of Nigerians and contribute significantly to the country’s GDP.
He also explained that it is important to look at areas the CBN could support the activities of exporters in the country to boost earnings from the sector.
The governor also clarified that CBN has provided the N500 billion Export Stimulation Facility that it had proposed two years ago, as well as the N50 billion Direct Intervention Fund from the Nigeria Export-Import Bank (NEXIM).
Part of those that will benefit from this effort are “some of the Nigerian companies that have benefited from some of our export stimulations facilities in the past and some of them still remain moribund, and we have also told our Development Finance Department to take a look at companies like Multi-trex and another company that is also into cocoa processing that is somewhere in Ibadan,” said Emefiele.
“We are going to be working with them to see that we really get their production back on track. By doing this we are going to be creating more jobs for our people.”
CBN will see that it will afford opportunity to increase Nigeria’s export earnings for the good of the country.
Emefiele pointed out that since the last two years when the country saw significant drop in its revenue as a result of the slide in crude oil prices, the central bank and federal government had been thinking of various means to raise its non-oil revenue so as to be able to withstand shocks.
According to Emefiele, CBN’s Development Finance Department as well as his Special Adviser on Agriculture would, in the next one week, put together a framework on how the funds would be disbursed.
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