Some experts express mixed feelings about the impact of the CBN policy on the state of food security in the country.
"Importers of all the 43 items previously restricted by the 2015 Circular referenced TED/FEM/FPC/GEN/01/010 and its addendums are now allowed to purchase foreign exchange in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market," a statement signed by Isa AbdulMumin, the CBN's director of corporate communications, said.
Also affected were security and razor wire, wood particle and fibre boards and panels, wooden doors, furniture, toothpicks, glass/glassware, kitchen utensils, tableware, tiles , textiles, wooden fabrics, plastic/rubber products, polypropylene granules, and cellophane wrappers. The ripple effect of this trend is evident in the state of food availability, accessibility and affordability in the country amidst inflationary pressure and the lingering effects of climate change.
He said the restrictions gave undue advantage and drove demand to the parallel market, which created a black market premium that currently sits at 32.5 per cent. He explained that the CBN needs to also work on rebalancing the encumbrances on the external reserves for FX swaps to banks as well as securities lending done with External Asset Managers to the apex bank without approval from the National Assembly.
However, Mr Salawu noted that there are concerns that the move might discourage local food production. Razaq Fatai, Research and Advisory lead at Vestance, a data-driven intelligence and advisory firm helping to transform Nigeria's food systems, said because key agricultural inputs were not on the list of the 10 food-related items affected by the CBN policy, the impact on domestic production costs were limited.