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The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has predicted that the short to medium term outlook for the Nigerian economy in 2020 would be bleak on that back of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mrs Toki Mabogunje, President LCCI, made the projection at the Chamber’s second press conference on the state of the economy in 2020, Tuesday in Lagos.
Mabogunje said that the pandemic had resulted to unprecedented collapse of commodity prices, capital flight, turmoil in the capital market, supply chain disruptions across sectors, and destabilisation of commercial and economic activities.
“Hence, we resonate with the International Monetary Fund’s position on a looming severe contraction of the economy by year end 2020,” she said.
The LCCI president, however, said that the current COVID-19 experience presented an ample opportunity for the government and policymakers to pursue structural reforms. She said it was an opportunity to put in place home-grown policies to engender a rebound of the nation’s economy.
According to her, reforms such as the liberalisation of the petroleum downstream sector, exchange rate convergence, securitisation of government equities in joint ventures, privatising nation’s redundant assets and PPP-led infrastructural development are critical to achieve these results.
