100 Days: Experts look for ways to restructure the economy for investment and trade

The Federal Government has been urged by economists to take action to revive the economy.

The government must develop policies to quickly stabilise the exchange rate, draw in foreign direct investments (FDIs), boost oil output, and improve electricity supply, according to the experts who spoke during a webinar on Saturday.

These suggestions, according to the experts, were important for handling the effects of numerous economic developments that occurred during the first 100 days of President Bola Tinubu’s government.

Nairametrics organised the webinar, which has as its subject “Economic Recap of the Current Administration’s First 100 Days.”

Some of these effects were noted by Mr. Ugo Obi-Chukwu, the founder of Nairametrics, including an increase in fuel and diesel prices, a decline in the parallel market exchange rate of 24.5% in just three months, and a drop in foreign exchange reserves from 35 billion to 33 billion dollars in May.

He also mentioned other problems, such as the rise in the nation’s debt to 87.3 trillion dollars, a 25.8% inflation rate, and the ensuing increase in the cost of living.

He suggested that the following 100 days’ worth of work should focus on implementing public service reforms, dealing with serious fiscal imbalances, stopping the theft of crude oil, fostering intra-African commerce, and paying off foreign exchange backlogs.

In order to enhance public debt finance, the government must identify ways to increase revenue and cut spending, according to Mr. Chika Mbonu, a business expert for Arise News.

However, he applauded the elimination of fuel subsidies, which he pointed out might be directed to other industries and reinvested in the public purse.

“The previous administration had consistently maintained that revenue is our problem, not debt. This is not the case because they work together as a unit, making it impossible to segregate them.

If we are not vigilant, bankruptcy is not far away from us. Ghana has been declared bankrupt.

The government needs to be aware of the main obstacles we must overcome in order to increase income and cut spending.

“This current administration is working on an inherited budget, but they now must develop new initiatives on how to drive revenue,” he said.

He continued, “Despite all the growth plans that have stressed diversification to non-oil exports, oil has been the country’s major source of revenue and foreign cash for decades.

“Since we are still relying on oil, I anticipate the government will take drastic action to boost oil production in order to restore our revenue and foreign exchange earnings.”

In order to increase trade and investment, Mbonu urged the government to remove barriers including power, security, transportation, and various tariffs that constrained manufacturing and production capacity.

In order to boost foreign exchange earnings and foster investor trust, the government should establish policies, according to Mr. Zeal Akaraiwe, Chief Executive Officer of Graeme Blaque Advisory.

“General investment will be closely connected to investor confidence in the policy-driven economy.

“Every investor wants to get his money back, and when they can’t, trust starts to erode, investor inflows start to decline, and the value of the currency begins to decline.

“The value of the currency is closely related to net economic flows.

“The relevance of FDI is not only the foreign exchange it delivers, but also the investment it makes in the economy’s infrastructure, jobs it creates, and value it adds.

“We need to pay more attention to the policies that drive net flows through the economy to restore the lost confidence, and create a transparent system to eradicate the backlog of foreign exchange debt,” he said.

In order for businesses to prosper and spur economic progress, according to Mrs. Nabilat Mohammed, a Research Analyst at Chapel Hill Denham, more must be done to fix the nation’s inadequate electrical infrastructure.

She also emphasised the importance of creating an environment that is supportive of young people, who make up the majority of the population of the nation.

According to her, young people represent the population’s genuine potential, and if they are led down the proper route by being given an atmosphere that allows them to use their skills, they will find great opportunities.

Financial analyst Mr. Kalu Aja advised the government to enhance its efforts in the development of human capital, notably through access to high-quality, reasonably priced education.

In addition, he emphasised the tourist industry’s latent potential and the need to bundle a variety of cultural activities, such as festivals, music, and entertainment, in order to stimulate FDI and increase remittances.(NAN)