Defective policies bane of Nigeria’s crediteconomy — NICA

Apparently miffed by what it described as the rather slow progress the country is recording in its drive towards evolving a credit-based economy, the National Institute of Credit Administration (NICA) has impressed on all stakeholders the need to close ranks in order to achieve the desired objectives.

In a statement issued by the nation’s foremost regulatory agency for credit management in the country, the Institute noted that though the transition of the economy from a cash-based to a virile credit system has been unveiled, certain fundamentals of the economy itself were not considered.

Specifically, the credit administrators noted that Nigeria’s cash economy is not only crushing but also flashing warning signs of meltdown, stressing that the cash economy has marred the desperate efforts to create and generate jobs for youth group, undermining national wealth creation in diverse forms, and totally exasperated the nation’s agenda for the industrial revolution.

“Many years afterward, Nigeria’s cash economy is not only crushing but also flashing warning signs of meltdown. The cash economy has marred our desperate efforts to create and generate jobs for our youth group, undermining our national wealth creation in diverse forms, and totally exasperated our agenda for the industrial revolution,” it said.

Waxing philosophical, the NICA observed that, “All over the world, dictatorial governance exists, the cash economy that the regime operates is an identical twin of dictatorship, bearing the same generic characteristics which range from a wide inequality between the” wealthy and the poor”, to disruption of the middle class, unbearable poverty capitalism, dwindling revenue generation, to death of industries, customised corruption, money laundering, tax evasion since cash-based transactions are not traceable, vulnerability to theft, and unemployment, among others.”

The Institute further maintained that as a strong opponent, the credit economy is a people-oriented system that allows access to different innovative financing opportunities needed for the economic prosperity and development of every nation.

“Nigeria can no longer wait to adopt a credit-based system of economy. The journey for this transition has commenced.”

In a related development, the president, NICA, Mr. Andy Ojei has inaugurated seven committees to man the affairs of the institute going forward.

The committee include: Education, Training and Research Committee; Membership & Subscription Committee; Publication and Events Committee; Government and Corporate Relations Committee; Establishment Committee; Credit Management Accreditation Committee (CMAC) and Economic Innovation & Emerging Industries Committee.

Ojei said, these committees are very key to the successful operation of the National Institute of Credit Administration, noting that, “as you are all aware, the Federal Government of Nigeria on Tuesday, 16th August 2022 signed into law the National Institute of Credit Administration (NICA) establishment Act No 1018 of 2022 of the National Assembly, making the institute a regulatory and supervisory authority for credit management profession, as well as serving as catalyst for the transition of the economy from cash-based to credit system in Nigeria.”