The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has urged Nigerians to re-adjust themselves so as to get out of the present situation.
The CBN, in a statement by its Acting Director, Corporate Communications of CBN, Isaac Okoroafor urged Nigerians to learn how to save the little they have, so they can use it over time.
Okoroafor said this while speaking at the bank’s fair organised for small and medium scale enterprises, artisan, farmers, banks, hairdressers, barbers, shoemakers and other business groups in Enugu.
“Though we are in trouble, it is just for a while. As fast as we can, let us re-adjust ourselves so we can get out of the present situation. First of all, what is recession? Recession simply put, is a period of dwindling economic realities. Incomes are falling and government’s revenue is dwindling. Unemployment is increasing because businesses are not the way they should be. They sack workers because income is shrinking.
“People are not spending especially in our case, because oil prices have collapsed and foreign exchange receipts have dried up; falling from $3.2 billion to less than $500 million a month. With this kind of situation, Nigerians should try to adjust themselves. This is the real change. We need to change our ways to the realisation of a new troubling situation which is that it is no longer business as usual. Nigerians should learn how to save the little they have, so they can use it over time.
“Nigerians should begin to eat what we produce and not to look for expensive dollars to import food. We should go back to corn, yam and made in Nigeria Rice. Let us produce toothpick and not import it from China. We should not import 20 million eggs from South Africa. We should stop importing chicken when we have them here. Nigeria should brace up. This is not 100 metre marathon. Let us brace up and change our ways. The most hit now are people who have refused to realise that we ought to eat what we produce,” he said.