Victor EzejaThe Nigerian naira crashed by 69.21 per cent year-on-year following foreign exchange market reforms that led to devaluation of the local currency.
According to official foreign exchange market data published on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), website, the naira closed trading at N1,535 per dollar on Tuesday, 31 December to end the year 2024. This reflects a N627.89 drop year-on-year when compared with N907.11 per dollar closing rate for the year 2023 at the official market.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelOn a day-on-day basis, the local currency recorded a slight appreciation against the dollar at the official market as it closed trading on Monday at N1,537 per dollar.
A the parallel market, also known as black market, the naira depreciated to N1,660 compared to N1,655 on Monday.
The Tinubu administration, through the CBN, had in June 2023, implemented foreign exchange harmonization policy which led to steep depreciation of the naira in the last 18 months.
The naira recorded the highest official rate of N1,695.54 per dollar on 22 November 2024. Its lowest level in 2024 was N859.02 on 18 January 2024.
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Prior to the 2023 FX reforms, the naira has never before crossed the N1000/$1 exchange rate. The high exchange rate has, according to analysts, been one of the major drivers of inflation and high cost of living crisis in the country.
The CBN has introduced various monetary policy measures to control inflation and also stabilize the naira value in the FX market.
However, economic analysts insist that there is need for robust economic reforms that would scale up production in critical sectors of the economy both to meet domestic demands and export excess products to earn FX.
As the year 2025 sets in, the monetary authority would continue to implement measures aimed at curbing FX volatility while the fiscal authorities are expected to play significant complementary roles with the overarching goal of strengthening the economy.
The Federal Government set a target of N1,500 per dollar in the 2025 budget.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
