Nigeria says 'll be responsible in it borrowing

Nigeria has adopted an expansionary fiscal policy with an enlarged budget in order to deliver a fundamental structural change to the economy, thereby reducing the country’s exposure to crude oil, finance minister Kemi Adeosun has said.
Adeosun, who spoke at a press briefing at the end of this year’s meeting of the IMF/World Bank in Washington DC noted that government was being responsible in it borrowing programme.
Many Nigerians have expressed worried over the increased debt being accumulated by the country in recent time.
But the finance minister assured that the government would be prudent in the management of the country’s foreign borrowings
“Why are we borrowing? Mobilising revenue aggressively was not advisable, nor indeed possible, in a recessed economy. But as Nigeria now reverts to growth, our revenue strategy will be accelerated,” Adeosun told Journalists at the press briefing.
According to her, the recent spike in borrowing by the government is being complimented by a medium-term debt strategy that is focusing more on external borrowings to avoid crowding out the private sector.
“This would also reduce the cost of debt servicing and shift the balance of our debt portfolio from short-term to longer-term instruments. This Government will be very prudent around debt.
“We won’t borrow irresponsibly,” said Adeosun, who led the Nigerian delegation to the 2017 Annual Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank.
She revealed that developments in the global economy since the Spring meetings were reviewed, noting that growth had picked up in 2017 even though not even.
“Global growth is estimated to be 3.6 per cent for Fiscal Year 2017, while Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is projected to grow at 2.6 per cent and outlook is for higher growth in Fiscal Year 2018.
“However, down side risks remain in the medium-term with high policy uncertainty, geopolitical tensions. Inflation remains subdued,” she added.