In light of the nation’s numerous issues, the Federal Government has been advised by the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) to review its fiscal and monetary policies, among others.
To lessen the tendency for contradiction, the body suggested that monetary and fiscal policies be intentionally aligned.
The director-general of NECA, Wale Oyerinde, claimed that despite the monetary and fiscal authorities’ recent implementation of several policies, those policies have had little to no effect.
The policies’ inherent inconsistencies, strategic sabotage by outside parties, and inadequate consultation throughout the development and execution of the policies, according to him, are the causes.
According to Oyerinde, the authorities would be better off reevaluating each monetary and fiscal policy, among others, to determine their effectiveness and long-term relevance, rather than holding on to and promoting some of these policies that had shown to be ineffective in the context of the current economic realities and challenges.
To do this, he suggested institutionalizing an intentional and open process of assessing economic policies, with the Organized Private Sector of Nigeria (OPSN), one of the most important players in the economy, at its core.
Despite efforts by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to stimulate and steer the economy onto a path of sustained growth, the NECA DG claimed that the interventions have not had the desired results in terms of boosting the flow of foreign exchange or reviving the economy.
To this aim, he stressed that it was vital and crucial for the involved authorities to unite and align the policies for the sake of the country in light of the apparent misalignment between the fiscal and monetary policies of the government.
According to him, while fiscal policies tend to stifle the productive sector by enacting new taxes and levies, such as the NYSC levy, telecommunication excise tax, excise duty on carbonated beverages, and beverage’s tax, among many others, while monetary policies aim to revive the economy through a variety of interventions.
According to him, the implementation of these taxes and levies, along with other anti-enterprise regulations, would significantly worsen the macroeconomic situation of the nation by worsening its multiplier effects, impairing citizens’ consumption patterns and reducing the capacity utilization of businesses.
Oyerinde suggested an alternate course of action for the government to explore in light of several major findings and recommendations made during the organization’s recently held employers’ conference in order to address the present fiscal and monetary issues.
He suggested setting up a purposeful, impartial mechanism with the private sector’s active participation to regularly assess the effectiveness and impact of policies and laws, emphasizing that ineffective ones should be altered and new ones introduced.
While the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF) of the CBN is commendable, he added, “we advise that the OPSN be involved in the implementation and allocation process to increase its credibility, efficacy, and assure careful monitoring.
