The Group Executive Director of CPL Group, Dapo Awofisayo has warned about the threat of the covid-19 pandemic on the Nigerian economy.
He underscored that Nigeria’s economy is being threatened by the twin shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated sharp fall in international oil prices.
Dapo explained that, “Since exiting recession in 2017,the Nigerian economy has maintained a growth rate around 2%. Also, the country’s external reserves have drastically declined from about $45 billion in August 2019 to about $34.5 billion as of April 7, 2020, due to the fall in crude oil prices.”
He further reiterated that the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic has led to dilapidation of the global economy and people’s lives, with catastrophic effects on tourism, investments, oil market, supply chains, capital markets, 2020 budget and a host of others saying, ” These mal conditions and others adversely affect Nigeria’s macroeconomic stability and resistance to external shock. However, the policies put in place by the Federal Government and the CBN are good enough to provide comfort for investors and instill confidence in the economy!”
Dapo Awofisayo who also runs Ore Irele Oil Palm CO, a subsidiary of CPL Group, has noticed an increase in the demand for Crude Palm Oil despite the harsh economic conditions and reduced level of economic activities. He remarked, “people must eat! Recession or no recession, Virus or no virus! The agricultural sector has not seen much disturbance and it’s encouraging.
The timely intervention of the federal government and the CBN in the sector has boosted local capacity, ensuring prices of food dont skyrocket in these turbulent times. “Imagine if we were still importing palm oil, rice and other food stuff? Nigerians would have suffered this period! We must thank the CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele and most especially President Muhammad Buhari for their timely intervention in the Agric sector.”
