The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Yemi Cardoso, has said Nigeria will not need to persuade foreign or local investors to put their money in the country once it sustains strong and predictable macroeconomic fundamentals.
Speaking at the CBN’s 2025 Executive Seminar in Abuja on Tuesday, Cardoso stressed that investor confidence naturally follows stability and credible policies.
“Stability is at the core of advancing Nigeria’s policy framework through inflation targeting. Investors run away from lack of predictability. The more predictability you have, the more incentive investors have to come to your market,” he said.
According to him, “Once the fundamentals are right, you don’t have to beg anybody to come and invest. Investors naturally gravitate to where there is stability and predictability.”
Transparency and fairness at the CBN
Cardoso reiterated his administration’s commitment to transparency, saying that the days of using personal connections to access services at the apex bank are over.
“You will not have to know the governor, the DGs, or the directors. You don’t come to the Central Bank every day just because you need something. That era is gone,” he declared.
“We must not return to excessive Ways and Means”
The CBN governor cautioned against a repeat of what he described as “frightening levels” of government borrowing from the Central Bank through Ways and Means advances.
He emphasized the importance of protecting the stability achieved over the last two and a half years, adding that the period of uncontrolled interventions and unsustainable borrowing “should never have occurred.”
“We must deepen and consolidate reform gains to reinvigorate capital flows and safeguard Nigeria’s financial markets. Investor confidence depends on credible policies, transparent markets, and sound governance,” he said.
“We must bake a bigger pie”
Cardoso also urged stakeholders to support ongoing reforms aimed at expanding Nigeria’s economy.
“Our GDP today, relative to our population, is not where we want it to be. We must bake a bigger pie. Everyone must take ownership to sustain the reform momentum for the benefit of all Nigerians,” he noted.
Fiscal–monetary collaboration key to reforms
In her remarks, the Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, lauded the improved collaboration between fiscal and monetary authorities, describing it as critical to economic reform success.
She highlighted the need to reduce energy costs and simplify business registration processes to improve competitiveness and boost production.
“We want reductions in the cost of energy, shorter timelines for registering businesses, securing permits, and carrying out basic engagements with government agencies,” she said.
Uzoka-Anite explained that Nigeria’s economic challenges are structural rather than cyclical, stressing that neither fiscal expansion nor monetary tightening alone can deliver sustainable growth.
She revealed that the Ministry of Finance and the CBN have jointly developed the Dis-Inflation and Growth Acceleration Strategy (DGAS) to stabilize prices and reposition the economy for long-term productivity and competitiveness.
“We identified what needed to be done and began working immediately. DGAS integrates key reforms needed to stabilize prices and drive long-term growth,” she stated.
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