FG Admits Border Closure Cause Of Rising Inflation

The Federal Government has admitted that the closure of the country’s land borders is contributing to rising inflation.

According to recent figures from the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics, the headline inflation stood at 11.61 per cent as of October.

The Minister of Finance/Budget /National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, told State House Correspondents that inflation rose due to hikes in food prices arising from border closure.

She was responding to questions after the Federal Executive Council in Abuja.

The FEC meeting was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.

However, she stated that the closure of the borders was a temporary measure adopted by the government to protect the economy against trade malpractices by neighbouring countries.

“We are still discussing with our neighbours to ensure that we all respect our trade protocols, especially now that the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement is coming into effect.”