BY JIDE AYOBOLU<\/p>\n
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has expressed concern over the impact
\nof COVID-19 on the local economy. He said the toll, especially the
\ndeclining global oil price, was becoming severe, calling for massive
\ninvestment in agriculture. Its Governor Godwin Emefiele spoke at the
\nAfrican Economic Research Consortium (AERC) Senior Policy Seminar XXII
\nin partnership with CBN in Abuja. The seminar has as its theme:
\n\u201cAgriculture and Food Policies for Better Nutrition Outcomes in
\nAfrica\u2019\u2019. Emefiele said the outbreak of the coronavirus had dampened
\nconsumer confidence resulting to decline in private consumption and
\nglobal demand slowdown. He said the sad development had posed a great
\nthreat to the economic gains achieved across Africa in the recent past.
\nEmefiele said the seminar could not have come at a better time than now
\nwhen economies within the region were inundated with challenges
\nresulting from the impact of the global economic slowdown, and currently
\nfacing further deterioration in global activity owing to COVID-19. He
\nstressed the need for the countries on the continent to massively invest
\nin agriculture.<\/p>\n
The CBN boss said: \u201cVery much like we have seen in the past, food is
\noften one of the immediate causalities of any catastrophe on the African
\ncontinent. The reason is not far-fetched, a sizeable proportion of the
\npopulation is food poor. \u201cAfrica is not winning the war against acute
\nhunger and malnutrition. Food insecurity and malnutrition plague the
\nlives of millions across the continent.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
According to the 2019 Global Report on Food Crises, Africa remains
\ndis-proportionally affected by food insecurity with more than half of
\nthe global 113 million, 58 per cent to be precise acutely food-insecure
\npeople living in 33 countries in Africa. \u201cHere is the irony, Africa
\nholds 65 per cent of the world uncultivated arable land, particularly
\nits vast 400 million-hectare savannas which are the world\u2019s largest
\nagriculture frontier. \u201cThe continent of Africa should have no business
\nwith food insecurity. Regrettably, its agriculture continues to be
\nvulnerable to climate-related shocks, disease, weak input supply chains,
\nconflicts and economic shocks.\u201d \u201cDisturbingly, the Food and
\nAgriculture Organisation (FAO) has predicted that Africa could add 38
\nmillion hungry people to the world\u2019s number of hungry people by 2050
\ndue to climate change,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Emefiele said that unlocking the huge potential of agriculture must,
\ntherefore, be at the heart of any meaningful engagement on the economic
\nand social development of the continent. He said the region had the
\ncapacity and must become the food basket for the world, rather than a
\nnet importer of food. Emefiele said the importation of food by the
\ncontinent was unacceptable, saying that Africa spends $35 billion on the
\nimportation of food annually according to report by the African
\nDevelopment Bank (AfDB). According to him, the continent must urgently
\ndevelop policy measures around building what has been termed grey matter
\ninfrastructure in Africa to end the scourge of malnutrition.<\/p>\n
It would be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari only recently set
\nup a Presidential Task Force to spearhead the campaign against the novel
\nCoronavirus (COVID-19) in Nigeria. The task force, headed by the
\nSecretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, was in
\nresponse to the potential effects of the pandemic on healthcare services
\nin the country and the economy. A statement by the Senior Special
\nAssistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu,
\nsaid the task force would coordinate multi-sectoral actions in the event
\nof an escalated outbreak.<\/p>\n
The statement reads: \u201cGiven the current global outbreak of the novel
\nCoronavirus and its potential of causing significant disruption to
\nhealth services in the country as well as impacting negatively on the
\neconomy, President Muhammadu Buhari has established a Presidential Task
\nForce for the Control of the Coronavirus (Covid-19). \u201cThis action is
\nin preparation for the unlikely but probable major outbreak of the
\ndisease in the country which will require a multi-sectoral
\ninter-governmental approach as advised by WHO similar to that adopted
\nfor the HIV epidemic in the last two decades. \u201cThe start and finish
\ntask group is\u00a0 \u00a0expected to deliver within a maximum of six months.\u201d<\/p>\n
Recalled also that, despite several attempts at diversifying the
\nnational economy, oil remains the mainstay of the Nigerian economy
\ncontributing about 90 per cent of the annual revenue, hence, it is
\nworthy to note that, the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries
\n(OPEC) has marked down its global oil demand growth in 2020 as a result
\nof the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak from 1.1 million barrels per day
\n(bpd) to 480,000 bpd. The Organisation is also proposing to cut oil
\noutput by 1.5 million barrels per day if its non-OPEC allies led by
\nRussia agree to the proposal, which will be presented to the 8th OPEC
\nand non-OPEC Ministerial meeting. If the proposal sails through, OPEC
\nmembers will cut production by 0ne million barrels per day while
\nnon-OPEC allies will cut production by 500,000 barrels per day. This was
\ndisclosed this at the 178th extraordinary meeting of the Conference of
\nthe Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries held in Vienna,
\nAustria.<\/p>\n
The oil cartel noted that the COVID-19 outbreak has had a major adverse
\nimpact on global economic and oil demand forecasts in 2020, particularly
\nfor the first and second quarters adding that the global oil demand
\ngrowth in 2020 is now forecast to be 0.48 million barrels per day
\n(mbpd), down from 1.1 mbpd in December 2019. Moreover, the unprecedented
\nsituation, and the ever-shifting market dynamics, means risks are skewed
\nto the downside, the group said, noting that the further impact of the
\nCOVID-19 outbreak on oil market fundamentals necessitates further
\ncontinuous monitoring.<\/p>\n
The Conference commended all OPEC Member Countries, as well as non-OPEC
\ncountries participating in the Declaration of Cooperation, for their
\ncontinued commitment to achieving and sustaining balance and stability
\nin the market. Member Countries reaffirmed their continued focus on
\nfundamentals for a stable and balanced oil market, in the interests of
\nproducers, consumers, and the global economy. The Conference emphasized
\nthe ongoing dialogue with consuming countries, and the consultations
\nundertaken in a collegial spirit before reaching decisions. Member
\nCountries are resolute and committed to being dependable and reliable
\nsuppliers of crude and products to global markets. The Conference
\nconfirmed that its next Ordinary Meeting will convene in Vienna,
\nAustria, on 9 June 2020, and noted that September 2020 will mark the
\n60th Anniversary since the founding of OPEC in Baghdad in 1960.<\/p>\n
Similarly, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) plans to provide $50
\nbillion to help low income and emerging market countries deal with the
\ncoronavirus outbreak. According to the global lender, the amount will be
\nraised through a rapid-disbursing emergency financing facility and $10
\nbillion of it will be available at zero-interest for the poorest
\nmembers. Speaking about the rapid spread of the disease, IMF\u2019s
\nManaging Director Kristalina Georgieva said over one-third of the
\nfund\u2019s member countries were directly affected. \u201cThis is no longer a
\nregional issue, it\u2019s a global problem calling for a global
\nresponse,\u201d she stressed. Georgieva explained that one-third of the
\neconomic losses from the COVID-19 outbreak would be direct costs such as
\nloss of life, workplace closures, and quarantines. Two-thirds, she
\nadded, would be indirect, including impacts on consumer confidence,
\nbusiness behaviour, and financial markets. \u201cThe good news is that
\nfinancial systems are more resilient than before the global financial
\ncrisis. However, our biggest challenge right now is handling
\nuncertainty,\u201d Georgieva said. She added that global growth in 2020
\nwould be below last year\u2019s level.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow far it will fall, and for how long, is difficult to predict and
\nwould depend on the epidemic, but also on the timeliness and
\neffectiveness of our actions,\u201d the IMF chief noted. The World Bank
\nannounced $12 billion as an immediate intervention for countries coping
\nwith the health and economic impacts of COVID-19. The new coronavirus
\nemerged in Wuhan, China, last December and has now spread to over 75
\ncountries, with the global death toll estimated at 3,500 and more than
\n92,000 confirmed cases. The World Health Organisation (WHO), which had
\ndeclared the outbreak an international health emergency, has updated the
\nglobal risk level to \u201cvery high\u201d.<\/p>\n
Moreover, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi has disclosed
\nthat the outbreak of Coronavirus may delay the completion of the
\nLagos-Ibadan rail project. The minister said the delay may not be
\nunconnected to the fact that the bulk of the workforce handling the
\nproject is stuck in China. According to him, the Chinese government
\nprevented some of the workers from returning to Nigeria because of the
\nvirus. He said: \u201cIf not for coronavirus, I would have said that we are
\nnearly finished with the Lagos-Ibadan rail. \u201cThe bulk of the workforce
\nis still in China. The government of China did not allow them to return
\nand that has delayed the work on Lagos Ibadan.\u201d The minister also
\nexplained that He said: \u201cIf not for coronavirus, I would have said
\nthat we are nearly finished with the Lagos-Ibadan rail. \u201cThe bulk of
\nthe workforce is still in China. The government of China did not allow
\nthem to return and that has delayed the work on Lagos Ibadan.\u201d The
\nminister also explained that the government was still test-running the
\nrail tracks. He also noted that the government would deploy 10 coaches
\neach to the Lagos-Ibadan and Abuja-Kaduna rail lines to ease passenger
\nmovement.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are still test-running the tracks. Commercial activities are yet
\nto commence fully. \u201cTo test-run the tracks, we brought in two coaches,
\neach coach takes about 25 passengers. So the two coaches take about 50
\npassengers. \u201cWe have got signals from the passengers and the engineers
\nthat the tracks are ready to run, but we need to complete communication,
\nsignalling and station buildings. Once that is done, we are good to go.
\n\u201cWe are bringing in 20 new coaches and four new locomotives, 10
\ncoaches will be deployed to Abuja-Kaduna and the other 10 to
\nLagos-Ibadan.<\/p>\n
Therefore, it is a good development that Nigeria is taking proactive
\nmeasures to curb the rampaging spread and negative influence of COVID
\n19, this will help the country to meet its planned expectations in
\nseveral areas and aspects of the national economy.<\/p>\n
BY JIDE AYOBOLU The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has expressed concern over the impact of COVID-19 on the local economy. He said the toll, especially the declining global oil…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":72210,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-72209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n