President Muhammadu Buhari has stated that Nigeria became the first country in Africa and the world, to introduce digital currency to its citizens, as he launched the Central Bank of Nigeria Digital Currency (CBDC), the eNaira, on Monday, October 25, 2021.
He stated that Nigeria's journey to digital currency began in 2017, and work intensified over the past several months with several brainstorming exercises, deployment of technical partners and advisers, collaboration with the Ministries of Communications and Digital Economy and its sister agencies like the Nigerian Communications Commission, integration of banking softwares across the country, and painstaking tests to ensure the robustness, safety and scalability of the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) System.
The president noted that there are multiple benefits that comes with the use of eNaira, stating that the use of CBDCs can help move many more people and businesses from the informal into the formal sector, thereby increasing the tax base of the country.
He said, "Alongside digital innovations, CBDCs can foster economic growth through better economic activities. Indeed, some estimates indicate that the adoption of CBDC and its underlying technology, called blockchain, can increase Nigeria’s GDP by US$29 billion over the next 10 years."
He also noted that the CBDCs can help increase remittances, foster cross border trade, improve financial inclusion, make monetary policy more effective and enable the government to send direct payments to citizens eligible for specific welfare programmes.
President Buhari commended the governor of Central Bank, Governor Godwin Emefiele, his deputy and the entire team of staff who worked tirelessly to make the launch a reality.
Source: www.clintonsdaily.com
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