The 303rd Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) arrived at a time of unprecedented economic tension. The Ameh News believes that no other period in recent memory has confronted Nigeria with such a brutal convergence of challenges: soaring food inflation, relentless insecurity, slowing growth, shrinking purchasing power, a fragile naira, and fading business confidence. These are not abstract numbers, they are the realities shaping the lives of millions of Nigerians.
Yet, against this backdrop, the MPC chose the familiar path of technocratic caution. It retained the Monetary Policy Rate at 27 percent, held the Cash Reserve Ratio at a record 45 percent, maintained the Liquidity Ratio at 30 percent, and made minor adjustments to the asymmetric corridor. The Ameh News views these actions as evidence that the committee prioritised orthodox monetary theory over human realities.
At a time when bold, empathetic, and context-sensitive policy was needed, Nigerians received more of the same: policy for the statistics, not for the people.
The Ameh News Perspective on Policy Disconnect
The Ameh News underscores a glaring disconnect: macroeconomic indicators may suggest stability, but households and businesses are under severe strain. Experts affirm this.
Celestine Ukpong, macroeconomist, concurs:
“Nigeria’s economic challenge is no longer a matter of monetary fine-tuning. While headline numbers suggest stability, Nigerians are spending the bulk of their income on food and essentials. Without addressing insecurity and structural supply shocks, inflation will remain a daily burden on families.”
Peter Adebayo, chartered accountant, adds:
“High interest rates and CRR levels are choking private-sector credit. SMEs and manufacturers cannot access affordable loans. Banks may profit, but the real economy suffers. Monetary orthodoxy alone cannot revive jobs or stimulate growth.”
The Ameh News sees these reactions as a validation of its long-held view: the CBN’s current approach risks defending statistics while ignoring citizens’ suffering.
Food Insecurity: The Core Crisis Ignored
For The Ameh News, the most pressing oversight of the MPC is its failure to acknowledge insecurity as the central driver of inflation. Across Northern Nigeria, banditry, terrorism, and farmer kidnappings have made agriculture a perilous occupation. Communities are paying “harvest taxes” to armed groups, and vast farmland lies abandoned.
This fuels a destructive cycle:
- Insecurity reduces production
- Reduced production drives food prices higher
- Rising prices exacerbate inflation
- Inflation erodes purchasing power
- Poverty deepens
- Poverty feeds further insecurity
The Ameh News contends that treating inflation solely as a monetary problem is not only analytically flawed but dangerously detached from reality. Ukpong emphasizes: “Interest rates cannot solve a crisis where farmers cannot plant or harvest safely.”
Questionable Inflation Figures
Official inflation is reported at 16 percent. Yet, The Ameh News questions whether these figures reflect the true lived experience of Nigerians. Adebayo notes:
“Staple foods, transport, energy, and rent remain high. The real economy tells a different story. When data does not reflect reality, policy loses credibility.”
From the perspective of The Ameh News, inflation statistics that diverge from everyday experience risk eroding public trust and undermining policy effectiveness.
Tight Monetary Policy: A Costly Orthodoxy
The Ameh News editorially observes that the CBN’s insistence on high rates benefits banks more than the economy. Lending rates of 33–45 percent are suffocating SMEs, private-sector credit fell from ₦75.9 trillion to ₦72.5 trillion in one month, manufacturers are cutting output, and youth employment is slowing. Meanwhile, banks are posting record margins.
Adebayo warns: “Without targeted interventions for the productive sector, the economy risks stagnation despite macroeconomic ‘success.’”
The Ameh News interprets this as proof that monetary orthodoxy alone cannot revive Nigeria’s economy, it must be paired with growth-focused, human-centered policies.
The Path Forward: The Ameh News Recommendations
The Ameh News believes the 303rd MPC meeting was a missed opportunity to align policy with the real economy. Nigeria cannot win statistical battles while losing the war for human survival. The editorial board advocates for:
- Security as a cornerstone of economic stability: a National Agro-Security Task Force must protect farmlands and food corridors.
- A dual CBN mandate: maintain price stability while stimulating growth with lower CRR and targeted lending to SMEs and manufacturers.
- Modernized, credible economic data: digital tools, satellite analytics, and transparent audits are essential.
- Structural reforms: repair agricultural roads, expand rail freight, invest in cold-chain systems, and improve industrial power supply.
- Export-driven growth: incentivize exporters, operationalize Special Economic Zones, and improve customs efficiency.
- Expanded social protection: food vouchers, transport subsidies, and school feeding programs to protect vulnerable households.
- Whole-of-government coordination: security agencies, economic ministries, CBN, NBS, and the private sector must collaborate in real time.
Celestine Ukpong summarizes the Ameh News editorial stance: “Nigeria cannot tighten its way out of this crisis. Policies must secure, produce, and protect citizens.”
The Ameh News editorial concludes: the 303rd MPC meeting signaled caution—but not clarity or courage. Monetary tightening has reached its limit. What Nigeria urgently needs is policy rooted in human realities: secure farmlands, affordable credit, credible data, revived production, and social protection.
Without these measures, The Ameh News warns, Nigeria risks continuing to win statistical battles while losing the war for human survival.
The Ameh News editorial critiques the 303rd MPC meeting, highlighting rising food inflation, insecurity, and weak growth. Experts Celestine Ukpong and Peter Adebayo emphasize that human-centric policies are essential to revive Nigeria’s economy.
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