CBN: FG No Longer Relies on Ways & Means- Edun

Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinator of the Economy, Wale Edun has disclosed that the federal government no longer depend on the Ways and Mean from the Central bank of Nigeria, CBN, to finance its budget.

Edun made this remark in Lagos on Thursday at the 2024 Access Corporate Forum, with the theme, “Nigeria’s Economic Rebirth: Hopes and Implications.”

The federal government usually obtain W&M as a loan to finance budgetary shortfall.

The revelation comes barely few days after the CBN disclosed that it will not exceed five percent WM for the federal government even though the National Assembly has increased the WM to 10 percent by amending the CBN Act.

The magazine reported that the CBN came under huge criticism from not a few Nigerians after expanding over N30 trillion W&M to the immediate past administration of Muhammadu Buhari.

The administration failed to return the loan arrears to the CBN contrary to provision in the CBN Act that such loans should be repaid within the budgetary year.

Speaking yesterday, the minister stated that the federal government no longer depend on the W&M to finance the budget, this he said, is made possible because the Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reforms are already yielding results.

Edun explains that the administration’s prudent financial management is yielding positive results, adding that “the economy is beginning to turn the corner, as we are all witnesses to the improved macroeconomic stability”.

According to Edun, “We have exited Ways and Means. What does that mean? It means that the government, when it has to pay domestic debt service or foreign debt service, does not go to the central bank to debit the consolidated revenue fund of the government, which means just printing the money.

“But more importantly, we are putting in place, with the backing and support of Mr. President, a world-class treasury and liability management system that will take this country to where it should be in terms of financial management.”

Keen financial analysts have blamed the country’s inflation on the huge borrowing from the CBN by the Buhari’s administration.