Get Help – Lagarde Advises Buhari

SAN FRANCISCO, April 14, (THEWILL) – Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has advised Nigeria to seek help from international institutions in order to restore its economy.

Lagarde, in company of David Lipton, IMF first deputy managing director and Gerry Rice, IMF spokesperson, gave the counsel on Thursday, at the IMF conference hall, in Washington DC, saying Nigeria needed to swiftly approve the 2016 budget.

“Our recommendation is that Nigeria seeks help from the international institutions that can best help,” she said.

“Second, that Nigeria is open-minded in using flexibility of the exchange rates, in order to absorb some of the shocks. We believe that this is more efficient than to have a list of products that are barred from being imported to the country.

“Third, we believe that it's really important that budget be completed, decided and approved and we stand ready to help Nigeria, if it wants to seek our help.”

“I believe, having visited Nigeria in January, that it is also really important that the country looks at diversifying its economy, because it cannot rely exclusively on commodity prices only, particularly oil, because it might very well stay low for longer,” she said.

“Nigeria is full of energy, smart people, and can really transform some of its activities including the agricultural sector where there is just too much by way of import, when there could be a lot of transformation in Nigeria and local consumption.

“A three-pronged approach with monetary, fiscal, and structural actions can work as a virtuous trinity, lifting actual and potential growth, averting recession risks, and enhancing financial stability.”

Story by David Oputah