Economic managers in ‘denial’ on recession as policy response seen inadequate

Two weeks since the Aug. 31 revelation by the NBS that the country is in recession, business leaders say Nigeria’s economic managers are in denial and not responding adequately to the country’s plethora of economic woes and public alarm over a lack of effective plan or communication about how climb out of the rut.

“Nigeria needs to restructure now that the oil boom days are over. In the mean time, we have to stimulate short term growth. We need money for this yet we have not assessed all the avenues for raising capital. May be we are still in denial,” Segun Ogunsanya Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer at Airtel Nigeria, said in a recent conference.

Nigeria’s economy slumped 2.06 percent in the second quarter of 2016 after a 0.4 percent contraction in the first quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said last month.

 

PATRICK ATUANYA