Abdulwahab Isa, ABUJA 
- 33 banks embrace scheme
- Digital currency to support payment system –Emefiele
Following the unveiling of Nigeria’s Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), eNaira, the President, Muhammadu Buhari, has said the digital currency will grow the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by $29 billion in 10 years.
Buhari, while performing the ceremony yesterday in Abuja, said this would be achieved following the supporting blockchain technology. In a statement issued by the president’s spokesman, Femi Adesina, the president said that CBDCs, together with digital innovations, could foster economic growth through better economic activities, increase remittances, improve financial inclusion and make monetary policy more effective.
According to him, “in recent times, the use of: physical cash in conducting business and making payments has been on the decline. This trend has been exacerbated by the onset of COVID-19 and the resurgence of a new digital economy.
“The need for urgent action is even more pressing if we take account of the fact that we are now part of the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement, which calls for actions to position the economy to benefit from the opportunity that this regional integration grouping presents while at the same time protecting our industries and businesses from unfair competition.”
He called for a close monitoring and supervision of e-Naira particularly “at the early stages of implementation to study the effect on the economy as a whole.” He noted that “there are Nigeria-specific benefits that cut across different sectors of, and concerns of the economy.” Using the ceremony to give insighy into the new mediumterm National Development Plan, he said: “Growth figures are meaningless if they do not translate to good-paying jobs and improved standard of living for our people.
“The question, of course, I insist, that must be answered regarding all our policies, is what they mean for creation of wealth and human capacity development. “The new plan incorporates aspects of the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy, which was articulated as a guide towards achieving our poverty reduction target.
“The starting point for the implementation of the Strategy is the realisation that increased employment is an indispensable tool for reducing poverty.” He also said the Federal Government was responding to the challenges and opportunities of the moment by articulating forward-looking policies and strategies and implementing a coherent, clear and consistent set of actions in order to achieve our desired objectives.
“The broad objectives of the new medium-term National Development Plan Plan are to diversify the economy, invest in critical infrastructure, build human capital and improve governance and security. “The intention is to achieve broad-based and inclusive GDP growth in order to create 21 million jobs and lift 35 million people out of poverty by 2025. “This ambitious but realisable target is consistent with government’s vision of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in a decade.”
He further said that the shock caused by the pandemic (which is still very much with us) was at a time that Nigeria as a developing economy is striving to become a digital economy so that “we can leapfrog into the Fourth Industrial Revolution. “As if this is not a challenge enough, we are also required as a good member of the international community to take steps to mitigate and to adapt to climate change.
“This is not a simple matter if we bear in mind that we are reliant on oil and gas for revenues and export earnings and yet reducing the use of fossil fuels is the frontline strategy being urged for achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.”
President Buhari then listed some of the interventions by government whose results, he noted, “are beginning to show although we must admit that there is still much more work to be done especially in the context of our stated priorities to reduce poverty and unemployment which call for urgency.
“The Economic Sustainability Plan adopted in response to the economic crisis caused by the pandemic was centered on tackling and reducing the COVID-19 caseload, restoring growth, protecting and creating jobs, rescuing businesses, and reducing social vulnerabilities.
