We must first fight inflation before talking about economic growth – CBN

The Central Bank of Nigeria has said it is all out to tackle rising inflation in Nigeria.

The acting director of the Banking Supervision Department of CBN, Dr Adetona Adedeji, disclosed this on Friday on the bank’s second episode of the talk podcast on its YouTube page.

He affirmed the bank’s decision to prioritise combating inflation over tackling rising unemployment rates.

During his talk, Adedeji emphasised that the Central Bank’s primary goal is to curb inflation, acknowledging the potential for impacts in other areas.

“The ultimate objective is for us to combat inflation. That is what the central bank is doing today. Whatever it takes to fight inflation, we are going to do that. It may have some impact in some areas.

“We can’t fight two things at the same time. There will be trade-offs. If you are fighting inflation, you can’t fight unemployment simultaneously. Even if you fight unemployment, it cannot reach the desired level. So, you have to choose either to fight inflation or unemployment. These two are macroeconomic objectives that are very critical to the development of the economy.

“But we are saying if we are talking of economic growth, it is because the economy is still relevant and available, which is why you are talking of economic growth. But if you look at an economy hit by inflation, you will not even talk of economic growth.

“So, it is essential that we concentrate and fight inflation. By bringing inflation down, we start talking of economic growth,” he said.

Meanwhile, despite the CBN consistently raising interest rates, which stood at 24.75 per cent in March, the country’s inflation increased to 33.20 per cent in the same month.