CBN Announces Plan To Stop Ways, Means Loans To FG

Olayemi Cardoso, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Friday said the apex bank will halt its Ways and Means loans to President Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government.

The CBN Governor disclosed this while speaking during an appearance before the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Finance Institutions, in Abuja.

New Telegraph reports that Ways and Means is a loan facility through which the CBN provides short-term financing to cover the government’s budget shortfalls.

According to Cardoso, the apex bank will no longer be a part of the Ways and Means agreement with the Federal Government until all outstanding debts are refunded in compliance with Section (38) of the CBN Act (2007).

The CBN boss said the payment of the outstanding balance of the Ways and Means will control inflation in the country.

He said “I am pleased to note the fiscal authorities efforts in discontinuing ways and means advances.

“This is also in compliance with section (38) of the CBN Act (2007). The bank is no longer at liberty to grant further ways and means advances to the federal government until the outstanding balance as of December 31, 2023, is fully settled.

“The bank must strictly adhere to the law limiting advances under ways and means to 5 per cent of the previous year’s revenue.”

Recall that on December 30, 2023, the national assembly approved President Bola Tinubu’s request for the securitisation of the outstanding N7.3 trillion Ways and Means debt balance.

On May 23, 2023, the senate approved the sum of N22.7 trillion Ways and Means loan, thereby securitising the debt.