LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-The Founder and Chief Consultant at B. Adedipe Associates Ltd., Dr. Abiodun Adedipe says Nigeria could attract more global manufacturing companies if the Naira keeps stabilising.
He made these remarks during a webinar organised by Nairametrics, focusing on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) policies and their economic impacts.
Adedipe noted that several new manufacturing companies have begun establishing plants in Nigeria, with more anticipated to follow suit due to recent CBN policies.
He emphasized that a stable Naira would greatly benefit the manufacturing sector by enabling companies to better strategize and plan their business operations.
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Addressing the sectors most influenced by the apex bank’s recent monetary policies, Adedipe said: “My first pick is manufacturing for the good reason that manufacturing thrives when the exchange value of the Naira is stable.
“A stable Naira enables manufacturers to plan and of course, it means that if the rate is also stabilized at let’s say between N1,050 and N1,250, then there’s the possibility for manufacturers to be able to plan so I expect a lot of traction in manufacturing.
“But that also is just by the way, the real fact out there is that we see a lot of new manufacturing entities, setting up factories, in some locations within Nigeria, especially the Southwest, and it is quite interesting.
“So, we expect more of this to happen and a good number of them are also coming from China and of course, Eastern Europe.”
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Adedipe identified the trade sector as the next significant area to be impacted, given it the third-largest contributor to Nigeria’s GDP.
“Now trade remains the most important because of the consumption habits of Nigerians. High import content of what we consume is unlikely to change overnight. It then means that as the exchange value of the Naira stabilizes, we will see an increase in demand for non-oil products and services,” he said