Nigeria to sell dead assets, targets single-digit inflation

The Nigerian government will sell assets dead or non-performing assets to credible investors who can revive them, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, has said.

Ahmed also said on Thursday at the maiden edition of State House Briefing that the government was working to reduce the country’s inflation rate to single digit.

“Earlier in 2020, we had made projections about Nigeria going into a recession (caused by COVID-19 and the crash in crude oil prices), and exiting it in Q4 2020 or Q1 2021, which we have now done,” she said.

She said the Economic Sustainability Plan — produced by a committee set up by the President and chaired by the Vice President — largely contributed to the exit of Nigeria from the recession.

“To support the state governments, the Federal Government granted them a stay on debt service obligations to the Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria – for a period of 12 months, which expires in about two months, with a possibility of extension,” the minister said.

She noted that the country was able to source for funding from the International Monetary Fund and the African Development IMF, among others – to reflate the economy in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

Ahmed said, “We have a major target to bring down inflation to single digits. We are working with the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and the Central Bank of Nigeria to achieve this.

“The largest contributor to inflation in Nigeria is food inflation. When you decouple it, you find that transport costs are the largest contributor. Hence the decision to reduce import duties on Tractors and other vehicles, in the Finance Act 2020.”

According to the minister, Nigeria’s debt is still very much within sustainable limits.

She said, “We need to roll out infrastructure now, and grow the economy now, not later. Our focus is on growing our revenues.

“Every year we have provisions for sale of FGN assets. 2021 is not different. There’s a BPE work plan for this. Assets that are dead or non-performing will be sold to credible investors who can revive them. Asset sales are not primarily for budget financing.”

The minister said the government was at the final stages of negotiation with China Exim Bank for financing of the Ibadan-Kano section of the Lagos-Kano Rail.