The Nation Newspaper

Tag: recession

  • ‘Our strategies for surviving recession’

    Procurement Specialist, Lagos Eko World Bank Project,  Kayode Adeleye has called on Nigerians to develop individual survival strategies to cushion the effects of global economic recession plaguing nations, including Nigeria.

    He made the call while delivering the keynote address at the second Great Ife Alumni Association meeting held on Independence Day at Springhill Hotel, Oko Oba.  ‘Survival Strategies in an Economy in Recession’was the theme of the lecture.

    Adeleye cautioned the people against succumbing to fear and anxiety, instead, to take measured risks to help assure their future and that of their children.

    He said: “For many, the global recession is a time of anxiety, challenges… The question is: how will we come out? Will we have made the most of our opportunities? In challenging times, we need to balance risk against opportunity, although it is not always easy. We often forget to look for opportunities in tough times because fear makes us focus on risk and danger. But it is in uncertain times that we can find the greatest opportunities, because we get shucked out of our safe pod and are then able to re-think our lives.”

    The business specialist offered several strategies to adopt in order to flourish in tough times and survive recession.

    He said: “Deal with reality, rather than denial; focus on core skills and hone in on them; improve your productivity by making each hour count; let go of what holds you back and spend time with positive people; have a contingency plan to keep you prepared for any situation; network with others; and develop new skills, preferably entrepreneurial.”

    Adeleye also appealed to Nigerians to cooperate and be patient with government as it tries to recover from recession.

    He said: “Times like this call for people who can see afar. The people should not protest against a system that is trying to heal itself. We should unite, find what we are good at and capitalise on them.”

    The guest speaker advised parents to invest in their children’s future by engaging the in entrepreneurial skills acquisition.

    “I advise the nation to tighten its belt. This is a time that is reminding us about the need for us to do a rethink, reorganisation and reorientation of our programmes and lifestyles. Inculcate and invest entrepreneurial skills into your kids. We should not wait until they are graduates before we do this,” he said.

     

     

  • Why manufacturing sector is in recession, by LCCI

    Why manufacturing sector is in recession, by LCCI

    The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has stated that the nation’s manufacturing and service sectors have entered recession after recording successive decline over the last two quarters.

    Its president, Remi Bello, who spoke at a media parley at the weekend, called for urgent measures to reverse the trend.

    He blamed the sector decline on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) tight forex policies, which he said made it difficult for manufacturers to acquire imported inputs among others.

    Bello pointed out the vulnerability of the nation’s economy to external shocks and heightened fiscal challenges were beginning to manifest with the collapse of crude oil price.

    According to him: “CBN foreign exchange policy needs to be urgently reviewed to encourage the inflow of autonomous funds into the foreign exchange market.

    “The current tight exchange controls is a major disincentive to the inflow of Diaspora funds, export proceeds and other autonomous funds into the economy, thus worsening the foreign exchange crisis.

    “The CBN needs to be creative in its fight against money laundering to minimise disruptions to economic activities.

    “Its current approach has caused considerable disruptions to economic activities in the country.”

    On the impact on the manufacturing sector, he said the sovereign risk perception of Nigeria has worsened over the last two months.

    He explained: “Several credit lines for Nigerian investors have been lost following the numerous cases of payment defaults to foreign suppliers.

    “Many companies are on the brink of collapse because of the failure to access foreign exchange for raw materials and other critical inputs, even companies whose inputs are valid for foreign exchange also suffer the same fate.”

    The LCCI boss called on the government to review some trade policy measures to boost customs revenue.

    He also suggested regular value-for-money audit in the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), greater vigilance on fiscal leakages from ghost workers, ghost pensioners and ghost institutions to stimulate the economy.

  • Brazil’s economy enters recession

    Brazil has entered recession after official figures showed the country’s economy contracted by 1.9 per cent between April and June, compared with the previous three months.

    Compared with a year earlier, the economy shrank by 2.6 per cent, the government’s statistical agency said.

    Analysts had expected a contraction, but the number was worse than expected. The country, the seventh largest economy in the world, has seen economic growth fall sharply in recent years.

    This is due in part to low commodity prices and sluggish global growth. Higher interest rates have also affected consumer spending, an important element of Brazil’s economy.

    In the second quarter, household spending fell by 2.1 per cent compared with the previous three months. The biggest falls came in the industrial sector, where construction output fell 8.4 per cent.

    Transport, storage, postal services, financial services and insurance all saw falls in output.

  • Senate warns against recession as oil revenue tumbles

    Senate warns against recession as oil revenue tumbles

    • As 2015 budget passes second reading

    The Senate yesterday warned that the Federal Government should tackle the emerging economic recession facing the country with all the seriousness it demands.

    The recession, the Senate said, is occasioned by the downward trend in oil revenue.

    The warning came as the upper chamber read the 2015 Appropriation Bill for the second time, referring the fiscal policy to its Committees for further legislative actions.

    Senators took turns to debate the general principles of the budget, with Senator Olubunmi Adetunmbi stating categorically that the Senate is processing a deficit budget.

    The All Progressives Party (APC) Ekiti North lawmaker, asked the Senate to demand from the Federal Government how it plans to fund the deficit in the budget.

    Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadeu, who summed up debate on the general principles of the budget, said: “Arising from the  debate on the 2015 Appropriation Bill,  I am happy that we have woken up to our responsibilities and this is also a wake up call to our nation as we face this challenging times of economic recession and the downward trend in our oil revenue.

    “I do believe that this is the time for us as a parliament, to ensure that while considering the appropriation bill for 2015, all the revenue items are captured.

    “Our Committee on Finance will help us to do that.  We need to ensure that all the revenue items are captured in the budget and determine a pool of resources to implement the budget when passed.

    “The federal government should also put up its thinking cap to develop new areas of revenue generation that would help us to drive our economy.

    “We have gone through this way before but eventually the oil price improved but unfortunately we did not learn any lesson while we enjoyed the oil boom.

    “I hope that this period, we will learn our lesson that will help us to be disciplined in our fiscal management and it is also time for us to also take seriously about our fiscal federalism so that states can develop their initiatives in increasing their revenue that would help them to manage themselves,” adding that we need to reflect as a nation on how to manage our economy and everybody will have to make sacrifices, going forward.

    He urged politicians to be mindful of their election expenses, stating that if anybody thinks that he would spend money and would recover it after the election, such would be disappointed because there would be no money to recover.

    Ekweremadu, then waxed philosophical, saying,“it may be that God has designed this way for us in order to make progress in terms of fiscal discipline.”

    He said the National Assembly is prepared to lead the fight to enthrone fiscal discipline in Nigeria.