Nigeria is an active member of a number of Multilateral and Regional
Organisations such as the IMF, World Bank, NEPAD, ECOWAS, e.t.c. It also has
Bilateral Agreements and Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) with some Countries
on economic and other issues. The Central Bank of Nigeria is an important agency
of Government in the conduct of economic policies and economic diplomacy between
Nigeria and other countries. This page seeks to explain economic developments in
the international scene that could impact on the Nigerian economy and Monetary
Policy formulation.
The International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund, was established in December 1945 by the
United States of America, and a group of forty four (44) governments based on a
framework of economic cooperation. The IMF focuses mainly on Nigeria’s
macroeconomic policies. Read more on the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
The World Bank
The World Bank Nigeria is made up of one hundred and eighty four (184) member
countries of which Nigeria is a member. The Bank and the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) introduced Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) as a condition for
lending to developing countries, in order to ensure that the living standards of
the poor are lifted by public expenditure. Read more on the
World Bank
The Association of African Central Banks The Association of African Central Banks was established following the
recommendations of the first Meeting of Governors of African Central Banks which
was held in Addis Ababa from 15 to 22 February 1965. The objective of the
Association is to promote co-operation in the monetary, banking and financial
sphere in the African region and to assist in the formulation of guidelines
along which future agreements between African countries can proceed in these
areas.. Read more on The Association of African Central Banks (AACB)
African Development Bank (ADB) Group African Development Bank (ADB) Group is a regional multilateral development
bank established in 1964, but commenced operations in 1967. It is owned by 77
nations from Africa, North and South America, Europe and Asia. The objectives of
the ADB Group are to mobilize resources for economic and social development of
African countries. The Group comprises the African Development Bank, African
Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigerian Trust Fund (NTF). Read more on the African Development Bank (ADB) Group
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was established on
May 28, 1975 and is made up of Sixteen (16) countries. The major objective of
ECOWAS is to establish a common market and create a monetary union. Its mission
is to promote economic integration in “all fields of economic activity,
particularly industry, transport, telecommunications, energy, agriculture,
natural resources, commerce, monetary and financial questions, social and
cultural matters. Read more on ECOWAS
The West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) The West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) was proposed by Nigeria and Ghana,
on December 15, 2000, as a second monetary zone in the ECOWAS to fast track
the monetary integration of Nigeria, Ghana, the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia
and Guinea (a French speaking country). The major objective is to facilitate
rapidly the achievement of a WAMZ monetary union with a common central bank
and a single currency for eventual merger with the Francophone countries who
already have, in existence a West African Monetary Union known as UEMOA.
Read more on WAMZ
The West African Monetary Institute (WAMI) The West African Monetary Institute (WAMI), is saddled with the
responsibility of facilitating the realization of the single monetary union of
the WAMZ. Read more
on WAMI
The West African Monetary Agency (WAMA) The West African Monetary Agency (WAMA) is an autonomous specialized
agency of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Read more on WAMA
The West African Institute for Financial &
Economic Management (WAIFEM)
The West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM) was
established on July 22, 1996 by the constituent Central Banks of The Gambia,
Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone became operational in January, 1997.
The principal objective of the Institute is to build capacity for
macroeconomic and financial management in the countries of its member central
banks.
Read more on WAIFEM
The New Economic Partnership for
African Development (NEPAD) The New Economic Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) is a
continental idea conceived by Nigeria and the Republic of South Africa and
adopted by African leaders at the African Union summit in Lusaka, Zambia, in
July 2000.
The New Economic Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) is a
continental idea conceived by Nigeria and the Republic of South Africa and
adopted by African leaders at the African Union summit in Lusaka , Zambia , in
July 2000. The goal of NEPAD is to eradicate poverty in Africa and to place
African countries both individually and collectively on a path to sustainable
growth and development to halt the marginalization of Africa in the
globalization process.
NEPAD's primary objectives are:
To eradicate poverty;
To place African countries, both individually and collectively, on a path of
sustainable growth and development;
To halt the marginalisation of Africa in the globalisation process and enhance
its full and beneficial integration into the global economy;
To accelerate the empowerment of women
One of the goals identified by NEPAD is the implementation of prudent
financial and economic management policies, such as stringent public financial
management and tight monetary policies as vital for the achievement of
sustainable growth and development in Africa. Some of the policies of the
Central Bank of Nigeria touch directly on poverty eradication and so bear on
NEPAD’s goal of acceleration of the eradication of poverty and inequality on the
continent. Read more on NEPAD
Bilateral Economic Cooperation The Monetary Policy
Department inter-faces with the
Central Banks of other
countries such as Bank of Ghana, Reserve Bank of South Africa, Bank of England, Reserve Bank of New York and the
Central Bank of Luxembourg, amongst others to share and exchange experiences on
Monetary Policy management with emphasis on exchange rate and liquidity
management. Read more on bilateral economic cooperation
National Clearing System Re-Visited:In January 1995, a revised clearing rule became operational to facilitate effective clearing of financial instruments and shorten the period of clearing.
Consequently, inter-state cheque clearing time was reduced from 21 days to 15 days, while intra-state clearing has been reduced from 12 days to 9 days.