Yes, Nigeria’s problem is that we do not import a lot. And that means our solution will not come by restricting imports or controlling people’s dorm bank accounts. For Naira to improve, Nigeria needs to import more – and importantly import the RIGHT things.
In 2022, South Korea’s total imports were $808.09 billion while Nigeria did about $60.35 billion for goods; South Korea is about 25% of Nigeria’s population. But if you check, South Korea imports were largely machinery, equipment, etc for production, while Nigeria’s were for finished goods. Also, in 2022, goods worth around $136.21 billion were imported to South Africa, with many of those industrial equipment. Check – more imports have not destroyed South Africa and South Korea’s currencies!
We need to import more and if we do, we will likely become a hub to serve West Africa with finished goods, and that means export more. Push the nation through policy to redesign the architecture of our economy, out of the SAP mindset of the late 1980s, where we created finance houses and banks, over building and running factories.
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Good People, I do not like when I read our political leaders making a case that Nigeria must reduce imports. Which imports? The $100, $200, etc virtual wallets from young people? Someone must rethink Nigeria from the ground up.
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