Rethinking CBN’s naira redesign
After the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) extended the deadline for the use of the old naira notes from January 31 to February 10, 2023, I went to my bank to see if I could access the new notes. I was shocked to discover that not only could I not access the new naira notes, […]
After the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) extended the deadline for the use of the old naira notes from January 31 to February 10, 2023, I went to my bank to see if I could access the new notes. I was shocked to discover that not only could I not access the new naira notes, I could not also deposit my old notes. An elderly woman was in tears as she could not obtain the money her son sent her from Abuja and she had no money to go back home.
To make matters worse, most of the banks are not accepting the old notes, which is against what the CBN said. They are not also giving out the new notes: a double whammy!
Much as the CBN makes Nigerians want to believe it is vicarious in its action to redesign the naira notes, it’s about time it accepted that so far the whole process has been shambolic. Footages have been circulating on social media where Nigerians have fought themselves to get the new money. Everywhere you go, hapless traders look on mournfully. You cannot blame them for refusing to accept the old notes. But unfortunately too, their intending customers have no new money to dispense. Some churches have told their members not to bring old notes for church offering. We hope hospitals will not join them; that is if they have not already done so.
All these I am talking about is in Lagos; a mega city. What is now the fate of those living in remote villages in Nigeria? The whole thing is chaotic and difficult to make sense of. Indeed for many Nigerians it is the bat feeling: can’t stand on their feet; can’t reach up their arms.
But most Nigerians suffer because the CBN has failed to do its work. Must Nigerians starve because the CBN failed to get its act together. Should Nigerians die because a government institution failed to think through its policy before even going ahead? By the way, couldn’t a pilot study have been done before going ahead with this policy?
The CBN must now rethink its strategy of redesigning our money. The new naira notes for the denominations in question are in short supply. It’s either the money printed is not enough or something else I would rather not mention is amiss. The CBN should use its tongue to count its teeth.
As a way out of this cesspool the CBN has found itself, I suggest it takes the process in stages. For instance, the old N200 and N500 denominations should be allowed to remain legal tenders and allow only the new N1,000 to circulate until after three months. After that, the old N1,000 note can cease to be legal tender. From then it will become the turn of the new N500 denomination to circulate for about the same three months. After that the N200 denomination will follow. With this, Nigerians will not feel the effect of the redesigning policy. The CBN still has time for a rethink and put a human face to its actions. But for now, the face Nigerians see is that of an ogre.
Dr. Cosmas Odoemena, medical practitioner, wrote from Lagos