FIJ
On June 4, 2014, Godwin Emefiele, the 10th indigenous Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), succeeded Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.
Since assuming office, Emefiele has taken numerous actions, made several policies and implemented many initiatives.
However, these actions, policies and interventions were often met with heavy criticism from the Nigerian public, and some of them caused a lot of outcry and calls for the governor’s removal from office.
The policies and interventions made by the apex bank on Emefiele’s watch include the suspension of foreign exchange sales to the bureau de change operators. Emefiele directed that all forex sales be done directly by the commercial banks. He also introduced the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP), an initiative riddled with debtors’ refusal to repay loans, and in 2021, the e-Naira, the controversial apex bank’s digital currency, was launched.
In October 26, 2022, the CBN announced that it would be redesigning the N200, N500 and N1,000 notes.
The bank said that the move became imperative because the country needed to improve on its currencies’ security and features, mitigate counterfeiting, preserve the collective national heritage, control the banknotes in circulation and reduce the overall cost of currency management.
It also stressed that the exercise was long overdue as international best practices required central banks all around the world to redesign banknotes every five to eight years.
The CBN also noted that the new banknotes would start circulating from December 15, 2022, and that the old notes would cease to have value on January 31, 2023.
However, since deposition began, Nigerians have continued to encounter challenges in their bid to have access to funds.
Nigeria’s cash-dependent informal economy and ordinary citizens have had to scramble for the new notes and this has led to violent protests in some parts of the country.
After several “conceited” statements by the CBN governor, the apex bank eventually decided to extend the deadline to February 10.
