Naira Redesign was Authorized by President Buhari- CBN to Finance Minister

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has responded to the assertion made by Zainab Ahmad, the Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, that her ministry was not told of the redesign of the N200, N500, and N1,000 denominations of the nation’s currencies carried out by the CBN.

Remember how CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele revealed on Tuesday, October 25, that the apex bank had received President Muhammadu Buhari’s clearance to redesign some naira notes?

However, on Friday, October 28, Ms. Zainab asserted that the CBN neglected to engage her ministry regarding the suggested redesign of the denominations as she was defending her ministry’s 2023 budget before the Senate Committee on Finance in Abuja.

[the_ad id=”31897″]

“We were not consulted. It was an announcement that we heard and there are also consequences.

We are also looking at what the consequences will be. There will be some benefits but there are some challenges. I don’t know if the monetary authorities have looked very closely at what the consequences are and how they can be mitigated.

I still advise that you have that discussion with the monetary authority,” she had told the senate committee

Osita Nwanisobi, the CBN spokeswoman, emphasized that the apex bank followed due process in its policy decisions in response to Ahmad’s statement.

[the_ad id=”41445″]

He said that the CBN’s management had properly requested and received President Muhammadu Buhari’s written clearance to redesign, produce, release, and circulate new series of N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes in accordance with the CBN Act 2007’s Sections 2(b), 18(a), and 19(a)(b).

[the_ad id=”41444″]

“The management of the CBN, in line with provisions of section 2(b), section 18(a), and section 19(a)(b) of the CBN Act 2007, had duly sought and obtained the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari in writing to redesign, produce, release and circulate new series of N200, N500, and N1,000 banknotes” he said

According to Nwanisobi, “currency management in the country had faced several escalating challenges, which has threatened the integrity of the currency, the CBN, and the country. Every top-rated Central Bank was committed to safeguarding the integrity of the local legal tender, the efficiency of its supply as well as its efficacy in the conduct of monetary policy.”

On the timing of the redesign project, Nwanisobi explained that the CBN had waited long enough for 20 years to carry out a redesign

”The standard practice globally was for central banks to redesign, produce and circulate new local legal tender every five to eight years,” he said

[the_ad id=”41445″]

The CBN spokesman expressed optimism that the effort will, among other goals, deepen Nigeria’s push to entrench a cashless economy in the face of increased minting of the eNaira while assuring Nigerians that the currency redesign exercise was strictly a central banking exercise and not targeted at any group. The ability of people to access the significant amount of money kept outside of the banking system and utilized as a source of funds for ransom payments, he claimed, also contributes to reducing the number of terrorist attacks and kidnappings.