To promote economic growth in the nation, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has stated that the government must remove obstacles to commerce and streamline and standardize trade procedures.
In a press conference on the state of the economy held yesterday in Lagos, Mr. Gabriel Idahosa, President of LCCI, delivered the keynote address.
According to him, in order to expand export earnings, raise domestic revenue, enhance citizen welfare, and boost company productivity, the government must foster an environment that supports export growth and competitiveness.
We suggest that in addition to tackling bottlenecks like port logistics, traffic, and transportation costs, changes should also aim to streamline and harmonize trade procedures. This is anticipated to establish the nation as the hub of regional trade and a gateway into value chains inside the region,” he said.
The president of the LCCI stated that in order to control the ongoing high inflation, monetary and fiscal authorities should address the supply-side weaknesses that are causing the inflation rates rather than placing an excessive amount of emphasis on demand-side management.
As one of the main causes of the rapidly rising inflation rates, we implore the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to maintain strict discipline in its foreign exchange (forex) market reforms. The high exchange rate vs the naira is one such factor.
Idahosa recognized that the naira’s exchange rate had improved over the past few days, heading near N1000 per dollar or less.
“CBN must maintain its regulatory and policy reforms in the foreign exchange market, implement measures to draw in additional foreign exchange into the economy, and foster investor confidence in the FX market’s performance,” he continued.