Naira Will Regain 45% Of Its Value Before December- FG

The Federal Government has said that it is putting several policies in place to make sure that the naira trades at a fair price.

Taiwo Oyedele, the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms said the policies will help the naira to gain 45 per cent by December 2023.

He made the disclosure in an interview with Bloomberg where he estimates a “fair price” for the dollar at N650 to N750.

“We think all of that will happen before December, and maybe in a matter of a couple of weeks we will begin to see the results, such that before the end of the calendar year, the naira should find its true value, not the one that is being done currently in the parallel market,” Oyedele told Bloomberg.

President Bola Tinubu’s government plans to settle a backlog of dollar demand estimated at about $6.7 billion and hopes that at $10bn inflow in the coming weeks.

Since the naira was floated by the Central Bank of Nigeria on June 14, 2023, the currency has fallen by about 40 per to N999.8 per dollar at the official window and N1250 at the black market controlled by the Bureau de Change operators.

The CBN had relaxed a ban placed on 43 items in 2015 from accessing forex for imports. The then CBN governor had taken the decision to decongest demands in the official window.

But the new CBN boss, Cardoso said the ban was responsible for the speculation in the black market. However, Since the ban was lifted, the currency has suffered the worst plunge.

Cardoso had said in an event “There is a need for clarity on how the market operates, and that is a particular assignment that is in progress.

“Once that comes out and people are very clear on what the rules are, and what the guidelines are, and they can predict, I think it will go a long way in managing this speculative activity.”