Vice President Kashim Shettima has called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and commercial banks in the country to swiftly resolve issues of cash scarcity and arbitrary charges by point of sale operators.

He also said the country’s debt to GDP will drop to about 30 per cent by the first quarter of 2025.

The Vice President gave the charge while addressing the Bankers committee 2024 annual retreat in Abuja on Friday.

Represented by the Special Adviser to the President on Economic matters, Dr. Tope Fasua, the VP said: “We want to make this an opportunity to appeal strongly to the committee to orderly clear up sundryissues in the sector, some of which are impeding the efforts of our governmeny efforts at financial and economic inclusion.

“Nigerians complained bitterly that they are unable to access the minimal cash even when needed.

“There seems to have been some moral hazard and other selection problem with the involvement of street type POS merchants. Nigerians complain about high and arbitrary charges and exploitation by road agents. We are sure you will be able to tackle with concerted effortsm” he added.

He said the administration needed more initiatives towards financing MSMEs,urging the Bankers committee to continue to support the efforts of the federal and state governments in the area of consumer credit cost.

Shettima also said the National Bureau of Statistics is working on rebasing theeconomy, the GDP and Consumer Price Index. He said the last effort was over 10 years ago, contrary to the recommendation by the World Bank.

In his opening address, the CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, said the country is in astate of financial crisis inherited by the apex bank.

Cardoso said: “Over the past eight, nine years, the economy grew on average at 1.8 per centper annum, and money supply grew at about 13 per cent. Outstanding Ways and Means as at end of 2022, was about 11per cent of GDP, arguably a world record.

“Now with such challenges, the responses to those have to be equally robust and challenging; and I think it is important as we have our discussions over the next few days. Let us remember the very challenging times that we have been through in the past year, and let us resolve that the solutions to these challenging issues have got to be robust and equally challenging.”

Cardoso called on the committee to reflect on how to foster an ecosystem that nurtures and supports innovation, reinforcing social contract with the Nigerian people to build a more inclusive economy to address critical questions on the way forward. (Daily Trust)