Naira free fall: CBN gov blames rising number of Nigerians schooling abroad, medical tourism
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Olayemi Cardoso has attributed the recent increase in the dollar exchange rate to the rise in Nigerian students who study abroad, as well foreign medical trips embarked on by Nigerians.
Cardoso spoke at the sectoral debate put together by the House of Representatives on Tuesday in Abuja.
The apex bank’s boss said the high cost of living remains a concern, adding that the CBN was working to bring lasting solutions, and bring down the inflation to 21.4 per cent through improved agricultural productivity.
“Volume on transactions on our market was over 800 million dollars. The cost of living remains a concern. The urgency of the matter is not lost on us. We are working to bring lasting solutions. CBN worked at bringing down Inflation to 21.4 percent aided by improved agricultural productivity.
“To address exchange rate volatility we will improve liquidity. These come with economic costs, which are temporary.
“There’s increasing demand for dollars with an increase in Nigerian students studying abroad, projected to have exceeded 100,000 by 2022. Given this data, 28.6bn dollars, education and medical tourism are also leading to increasing demand for dollars,” he added.
