The Central Bank of Nigeria is fully committed to addressing the mounting inflation in the country. Dr. Adetona Adedeji, the acting director of the Banking Supervision Department at CBN, conveyed this message during the bank’s latest podcast episode on YouTube.
He underscored the bank’s focus on combating inflation, even over addressing the escalating unemployment rates. Adedeji highlighted that while curbing inflation remains the primary objective, the bank recognizes the potential ripple effects across various sectors.
“The ultimate objective is for us to combat inflation. That is what the central bank is doing today. Whatever it takes to fight inflation, we are going to do that. It may have some impact in some areas.
“We can’t fight two things at the same time. There will be trade-offs. If you are fighting inflation, you can’t fight unemployment simultaneously. Even if you fight unemployment, it cannot reach the desired level. So, you have to choose either to fight inflation or unemployment. These two are macroeconomic objectives that are very critical to the development of the economy.
“But we are saying if we are talking of economic growth, it is because the economy is still relevant and available, which is why you are talking of economic growth. But if you look at an economy hit by inflation, you will not even talk of economic growth.
“So, it is essential that we concentrate and fight inflation. By bringing inflation down, we start talking of economic growth,” he said.
Meanwhile, despite the CBN consistently raising interest rates, which stood at 24.75 per cent in March, the country’s inflation increased to 33.20 per cent in the same month.
