CBN to increase access to finance, credit for households, businesses

The Central Bank of Nigeria has said that the banking sector will increase access to loans for Nigerian households and businesses in 2022.

This was disclosed by Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, in a statement.

He stressed the need for all stakeholders to work to build a more resilient economy that would be better able to contain external shocks while supporting growth and wealth creation in key sectors of the economy.

Godwin Emefiele stated that the objective of the central bank in 2022 would be to increase access to loans for households.

He said, “The policy focus of the bank for 2022 is with a pledge to sustain improved access to finance and credit for households and businesses, mobilise investment to boost domestic productivity, enable faster growth of non-oil exports, and support employment generating activities.”

Emefiele stated that one of the vital lessons learned from the COVID-19 outbreak was the need to make conscious measures to diversify Nigeria’s economic base.

Emefiele stated that the country must do all necessary to decrease the country’s imports of products.

“Proactive steps on the part of stakeholders in the private sector, in collaboration with the government in supporting the growth of sectors such as manufacturing, ICT, and infrastructure, will strengthen our ability to deal with the challenges of COVID-19, and stimulate further growth of our economy,” he said.

Speaking about the importance of creating an efficient infrastructure ecosystem in Nigeria and the importance of improved infrastructure in the development of the Nigerian economy, he revealed that all necessary approvals had been obtained for the Infrastructure Corporation to begin operations in early 2022.

Ime N