Cardoso: Nigeria must ramp up oil production to boost economy

By Mariam Abeeb

Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), says Nigeria must ramp up oil production to boost the economy.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday after the monetary policy committee’s 297th meeting in Abuja, Cardoso said inasmuch as the strategy of the apex bank is to unlock as many diversified sources as possible into the foreign exchange (FX) section, it is not enough and can never replace the fundamentals.
The central bank governor said as long as the country operates on a monolithic economy, achieving a strong exchange rate “that we all so desire” would continue to be hampered.
“We may like to think or dream it can, but it can’t. Until the fundamentals are fixed and in place, you will continue to sub-optimise,” Cardoso said.
“Oil production has got to be ramped up to the level that will carry the economy. I think we are all ongoing witnesses to the efforts that are being made in that sector. It has to happen.
“I spoke about the sad situation that we as Nigerians face today whereby we are a monolithic economy.
“We need to diversify our economy. There is so much that a central bank can do. Without the fundamentals in the right position, we will continue to sub- optimiser.”
The CBN governor said Nigerians must find ways to achieve import substitution.
“It can not just be about import and we must be able to calibrate accordingly our taste for foreign goods,” Cardoso said.
“These are all things that will determine essentially where we settle in respect to our foreign exchange rate.”
He said the central bank is determined to play its part in ensuring that the market operates efficiently, while warning that the apex bank is ready to penalise “those who play the market”.
On September 10, the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said Nigeria’s average daily crude oil production increased to 1.35 million barrels per day (bpd) in August.
However, the oil output was below the OPEC quota of 1.5 million bpd.