A staggering N2.13 trillion was what Nigeria spent as subsidy on foreign exchange for marketers between 2016 and 2019.
The Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mallam Mele Kyari, made this known at a downstream stakeholders’ meeting which held at the NNPC headquarters in Abuja on Friday, September 25, 2020.
Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, Dr. Kennie Obateru, in a statement, quoted Kyari as stating that concrete steps had been taken to address the main concerns of marketers, especially the issue of availability of foreign exchange for importation of petroleum products.
Kyari said the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had already taken the first step of merging all foreign exchange windows to have a unified exchange rate.
“It is really not in our interest to be the sole importer of PMS in the country. We have taken definite steps to exit the situation. This is a definite step taken and the details would be communicated to stakeholders like MOMAN, DAPMAN, IPMAN and others outside this forum,” Kyari said.
He added that there were plans by the government to inject about N2.7 trillion into the economy to stimulate production, stabilise the exchange rate and cushion the inflationary effect of the pump price increase.
He stated that in response to the concerns raised recently by members of the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners over the state of roads, especially those on the Niger State axis, the Federal Government had commenced road repair works to allay their fears.
The NNPC helmsman said measures had been put in place to ensure adequate supply of petroleum products for the end of year festivities and the projected increase in movement of people across the length and breadth of the country.
Kyari said the Federal Government was keen on driving the deregulation programme to create value for the country and ensure that Nigerians enjoyed the benefits.
Also speaking, Sarki Auwalu, Director of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), who was represented by the agency’s Assistant Director, Depots, Products and Jetties, Bashir Sadiq, said government was interested in opening up the downstream sector, adding that the DPR was in support of NNPC’s initiatives in the sector.
