Uche Usim, Abuja
As Nigeria goes into total lockdown with 22 confirmed cases of the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in a little under a month, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Saturday responded by scaling up the economic stimulus package from N1.1 trillion to N3.5 trillion, to cushion the impact of the fast-spreading pandemic.
CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele, who made the disclosure, also clarified that the exchange rate of N380 per dollar at the Investors and Exporters (I&E) forex window was not a devaluation but an adjustment to reflect current realities.
Mr Emefiele said this at an extraordinary bankers committee meeting comprising bank Chief Executives and CBN directors held in Lagos on Saturday.
“CBN has a responsibility to see to the adjustment in currency. What you have seen is an adjustment in currency. We have also been accused that we have a hand. We don’t have a hand,” the central bank governor explained.
The current official exchange rate for the naira has jumped from N307/$1 to N360 per dollar.