LAGOS, JULY 19, 2016 – Mr Femi Ekundayo, a former President, the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), on Tuesday urged the Federal Government (FG) to prune the rising inflation figures by tackling their root causes.Ekundayo said in Lagos, that identifying the root causes of inflation was important in checking it.
The former banker spoke against the backdrop of the Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) figure for June released on Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The bureau had put the June inflation figure at 16.5 per cent from 15.6 per cent in May.
It also said that the CPI, which measures inflation, had continued to record relatively strong increases for the fifth consecutive month.
“The headline index increased by 16.5 per cent (year-on-year), 0.9 per cent points higher from the 15.6 per cent it recorded in May.
“While imported foods continue to increase at a faster pace, the food sub-index on the aggregate increased, albeit at a slower pace in June relative to May.
“The index increased by 15.3 per cent (year-on-year) in June up by 0.4 per cent points from the rates recorded in May,’’ the bureau said.
Ekundayo noted that the government’s policy on job creation could reduce inflation if properly implemented.
He said that identifying the factors that triggered inflation would assist the government in planning on how to avert recurrence.
The expert said that the CBN had restricted importers of 41 items from accessing foreign exchange.
He, however, said that the affected importers were still accessing funds from the parallel market.
According to him, a period of slow economic growth should stimulate local production and the pruning of consumers’ appetite for imported goods.
He advised the government to ensure that the reforms in the power sector bring about the needed change, thereby, cutting down inflation.
“If power supply is improved, the inflation rate will come down.
“There should be a pragmatic approach to bring down inflation to a figure not more than 12 per cent by the end of the year,’’ Ekundayo said.
