Lagos – The National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) on Tuesday urged the Federal Government to take practical steps at diversifying the nation`s economy.
The Public Relations Officer of the association, Mr Stanley Ezenga, made the plea in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
Ezenga said it was the only way to address the foreign exchange (forex) scarcity hitting the country.
“The only way to solving the dollar scarcity problem in the country is for the government to move the country from a mono-economy to an economy that gets foreign exchange from diverse sources.
“There are so many export potential in the country that should be harnessed.
“It is when we begin to export more than we import that we will overcome the volatility in the oil market and get more forex for the economy “he told NAN.
Ezenga said the free fall of the value of the naira at the parallel market was as result of the forex scarcity in the country.
The freight forwarder said that the nation’s currency would be strong if the economy was diversified.[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”70560″]
He said the forex restriction on some imported items had substantially affected importation, resulting in low business activities for freight forwarders.
The association’s spokesman urged the government to reduce the number of items covered by the restriction to increase the tempo of activities at the ports and widen the space for customs to generate revenue.
“As of now, the forex scarcity is affecting activities at the ports and the situation is taking its toll on both the importers and we freight forwarders.
“The government should reduce the number of items banned under the policy.
“This will boost activities at the ports and give more revenue for the customs,“ he told NAN. (NAN)
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