The World Bank has warned that import restrictions and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s foreign exchange policies are the main drivers of food inflation in Nigeria.
This was revealed in the World Bank’s new biannual study, Africa’s Pulse.
The Nigerian central bank has implemented regulations such as prohibiting some commodities from accessing forex at the official rate through the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window.
Nonetheless, the Washington-based lender has determined that policies aimed at pinning the currency rate and imposing trade restrictions have fueled Nigeria’s alarming inflation.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released the CPI (Consumer Price Index) report for the month of March 2022, which showed that Nigeria’s inflation rate quickened to a five-month high, standing at 15.92 per cent, representing 0.21 per cent point rise above the 15.7 per cent rate recorded in the previous month.
The rise in the rate was attributed to the 17.2 per cent rise in the food index, while the core inflation stood at 13.91 per cent for March 2022.
The CBN classified 41 products on its foreign exchange restriction list in 2015, claiming that the action was required to conserve the country’s foreign reserve and stimulate local production of the restricted items.
