PHOTO: TWITTER
• External loans hit $33.18b, 91.4 per cent of forex reserves
• Currency depreciation affects capacity to service debts, says OPS
With the fall in oil revenues and the huge infrastructural deficit needed to propel economic growth, Nigeria’s capacity to service its huge loans amid low productivity and earnings is unsettling stakeholders.
The recent Senate’s approval of President Muhammadu Buhari’s $5.513 billion loan request bumped the country’s external debt profile to $33.18 billion, representing 91.4 per cent of the country’s foreign reserves of $36.31 billion at the close of transactions at the weekend.
According to the Organised Private Sector (OPS), rather than exploring fiscal reforms that would aid productivity, diversification, and stimulate private sector contribution to the economy, the government continues to explore the easy approach to financing its budget.
The Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy (MTEF/FSP) report recently…
Source: Guardian Newspaper
