Full List: Importers of Rice, Cement, Clothes, 40 Other Items Can Now Access Forex at Official Rates
Published 17 mins ago on October 13, 2023By Peter.A


The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has lifted the ban on 43 items restricted from having access to foreign exchange.
In 2015, the importers of the 43 items were restricted from accessing foreign exchange in the official market
Analysts believe that the move contributed to high inflation and standard of living in Nigeria

The Central Bank of Nigeria, on Thursday, October 12, 2023, lifted the ban on 43 items restricted from accessing foreign exchange at the official window.

In 2015, the Central Bank of Nigeria, under Godwin Emefiele, banned 41 items, restricting their importers from accessing foreign exchange at the official window.


Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso Credit: PIUS UTOMI/EKPEI Source: Getty Images

Experts pessimistic move will ease inflation, other constraints

The list was later expanded with two new items added.

Analysts believe the ban was needless and contributed significantly to rising inflation and Nigeria’s high cost of living.

In an exclusive interview, Frederick Osas, an investment banker, told Legit.ng that the ban on the items did not make common sense as they could not be manufactured in Nigeria.

“The ban aimed to encourage local production, especially rice. But you can see that Nigeria failed terribly in that regard. Instead of pushing down inflation, the ban contributed to high inflation.

Nigerians should know that the items are not banned in the country but that their importers can no longer have access to foreign exchange at the official rate to bring them to Nigeria,” Osa said.

He said that CBN and the Nigerian government must have thought that the ban affected the standard of living and inflation, but that is not entirely true.

According to him, there are other factors affecting inflation in Nigeria.

“The country is running empty on Forex, and this is because we don’t export anything other than crude oil. So, we have one commodity bringing in all the Forex, and importers will begin to scramble for the few forexes available,” he said.

He stated that the move might amount to little, especially in helping the naira regain its strength against the dollar, but that it will go a long way, especially in food imports.

He said:

“Remember that the arrowhead of inflation is food. The moment importers are allowed to import some food items into the country, it will ease the prices because there are so many mouths chasing the few available right now.”
Below is the list of the items:

Rice

Cement

Margarine

Palm kernel

Palm oil products

Vegetable oils

Meat and processed meat products

Vegetables and processed vegetable products

Poultry and processed poultry products

Tinned fish in sauce (Geisha)/sardine

Cold-rolled steel sheets

Galvanized steel sheets

Roofing sheets

Wheelbarrows

Head pans

Metal boxes and containers

Enamelware

Steel drums

Steel pipes

Wire rods (deformed and not deformed)

Iron rods

Reinforcing bars

Wire mesh

Steel nails

Security and razor fencing and poles

Wood particle boards and panels

Wood fiberboards and panels

Plywood boards and panels

Wooden doors

Toothpicks

Glass and glassware

Kitchen utensils

Tableware

A

Tiles-vitrified and ceramic

Gas cylinders

Woven fabrics

Clothes

Plastic and rubber products

Polypropylene granules

Cellophane wrappers and bags

Soap and cosmetics

Tomatoes/tomato paste

Eurobond/foreign currency bond/ share purchases

After 8 years, CBN Finally Lifts Ban on 43 Restricted Items in Nigeria

Ambajay reported that the limitations on foreign exchange imposed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on importers of 43 commodities eight years ago have finally been abolished.

This was contained in a statement signed by Dr. Isa AbdulMumin, the bank’s director of corporate communications.

The development follows an earlier report by Legit.ng that the CBN clarified foreign exchange (FX) access for importers of 43 items previously restricted from obtaining FX through the official window.

Why is milk and dairy products not included? I thought Buhari also banned it to force us to be drinking raw nunu from cows?
Tinubu should include milk please. The product is very expensive

As in

Beremx:
Why is milk and dairy products not included? I thought Buhari also banned it to force us to be drinking raw nunu from cows?
Tinubu should include milk please. The product is very expensive

💯

hope food and cement go cheap ??

I hope this will drive down inflation on the short and long run

Apc playing ping-pong with gullible Nigerians...tueh


No be same restrictions wey buhari, ebola and agbado people say we must produce what we eat? Wetin happen?

Vseless people

Though a good move..

But this will make the local producers to engage in unnecessary competitions...it will also lead to massive influx of foreign products
Killing local producers

Beremx:
Why is milk and dairy products not included? I thought Buhari also banned it to force us to be drinking raw nunu from cows?
Tinubu should include milk please. The product is very expensive

I can't believe there will be a time 120gram of milk will be sold for #300-#350 in Nigeria

Milk wey person dey buy for like #50-#100 few years ago.

Ozommadu:
Apc playing ping-pong with gullible Nigerians...tueh


No be same restrictions wey buhari, ebola and agbado people say we must produce what we eat? Wetin happen?

Vseless people

The policy is not working, if the new government decide to try another approach, I don't see a big deal in it.

Let's just hope this will lead to a positive result.

High price of foodstuffs is one of the reason inflation is so high in Nigeria.

BIZNess123:

Though a good move..

But this will make the local producers to engage in unnecessary competitions...it will also lead to massive influx of foreign products
Killing local producers

There was no competition whatsoever to begin with. All these supposedly banned products were still available in the market.

The last incompetent admin just rushed to ban those products when they were aware we were not self-sufficient in their production. Moreover, they don't consume these allegedly locally-produced products. All the banning was just to score some cheap political points.

Hpesoj:


There was no competition whatsoever to begin with. All these supposedly banned products were still available in the market.

The last incompetent admin just rushed to ban those products when they were aware we were not self-sufficient in their production. Moreover, they don't consume these allegedly locally-produced products. All the banning was just to score some cheap political points.

What I meant is that it will stir up competitions btw local producers and importers concerning prices

Am not on support of lifting ban on

Cement
Palm kernel
Veg oils
Toothpicks
Tomatoes
Raw meat
Steel (ajoakuta should be fixed)

We produce these items na

BIZNess123:


What I meant is that it will stir up competitions btw local producers and importers concerning prices

Yeah I get.

The local producers were not in the competition, at least for rice, vegetable oil, and so on. I think only cement (Dangote, Bua, Ibeto, a Lafarge - Elephant) was what we didn't really have much issue with in terms of importation.

For the past 8 years that these bans were "effective", did it stop foreign rice, kitchen utensils, toothpicks, etc from flooding the markets? Was there any improvement in the local production of these products?

For use to start the discussion about local products competing with foreign products, a lot needs to be done. For instance, how easy is it to start manufacturing kitchen utensils with the current cost of diesel, double taxation, and inefficient transportation? Also, with the heightened insecurity across the country, rice production is a very risky and expensive venture.

In these cases, most potential producers would likely consider importing the finished or semi-finished produce to sell here. That is what you see Dangote and Bua doing with regards to sugar. They set up a supposed sugar processing factory, when in fact they import raw sugar and then refine it here in Nigeria under the guise of local production..

BIZNess123:

Though a good move..

But this will make the local producers to engage in unnecessary competitions...it will also lead to massive influx of foreign products
Killing local producers

it's very glaring we are not ready for a closed economy yet. But I know that as soon as government can produce enough electricity for the masses and distribute at cheaper rate to factories and industries. Things will change we will become industrialised once we can price foreign products out of our market naturally.

Beremx:
Why is milk and dairy products not included? I thought Buhari also banned it to force us to be drinking raw nunu from cows?
Tinubu should include milk please. The product is very expensive

It is included. This list is not complete. Even furniture is included.
https://nairametrics.com/2023/06/17/cbn-list-of-43-banned-items-from-nigerian-foreign-exchange-market/

As long it drives prices of consumables down, I have no problem.


At every interval I went to the market, I always buy higher than the previous price.


The inflation is crazy.

Surely this will just lead to even more pressure on the niara as demand for FX will increase

BIZNess123:

Though a good move..

But this will make the local producers to engage in unnecessary competitions...it will also lead to massive influx of foreign products
Killing local producers

not so, local farmers are overwhelmed with herders and now bandits hence contributing lesser to the market and economy.

Paraman:
The policy is not working, if the new government decide to try another approach, I don't see a big deal in it.

Let's just hope this will lead to a positive result.

High price of foodstuffs is one of the reason inflation is so high in Nigeria.

So trial and error with lives of Nigerians must be commended?? How much you sell your conscience?

No make me curse you oo

Ozommadu:


So trial and error with lives of Nigerians must be commended?? How much you sell your conscience?

No make me curse you oo

A Government introduce a policy that's not working, another government decide to try another approach you dey complain

It seems some of you guys are paid to complain online

bjdon:
Surely this will just lead to even more pressure on the niara as demand for FX will increase

government can get more dollars through other means e.g the mining sector, ( Lithium, Gold, Silver, Iron, steel, limestone, etc.)

More dollars will flow in through our refineries

BIZNess123:
Am not on support of lifting ban on

Cement
Palm kernel
Veg oils
Toothpicks
Tomatoes
Raw meat
Steel (ajoakuta should be fixed)

We produce these items na

e are can or already produce all the items.

BIZNess123:

Though a good move..

But this will make the local producers to engage in unnecessary competitions...it will also lead to massive influx of foreign products
Killing local producers

What has the local producers achieved since the ban? Rather cost of these products went up astronomically.

Paraman:
A Government introduce a policy that's not working, another government decide to try another approach you dey complain

It seems some of you guys are paid to complain online

That means Buhari wasted 8 years of our time testing a policy that was not well examined. How sure are we that this policy is not going to fail as well? See the trial and error is too much and will not encourage investors. Never. For instance, 8 years ago I set up a tomatoe factory because government ban foreign tomatoes, now in 2023 the ban is lifted. Bro that mean my investment is gone. The government is not stable investors can't work with such a system.

Hpesoj:


Yeah I get.

The local producers were not in the competition, at least for rice, vegetable oil, and so on. I think only cement (Dangote, Bua, Ibeto, a Lafarge - Elephant) was what we didn't really have much issue with in terms of importation.

For the past 8 years that these bans were "effective", did it stop foreign rice, kitchen utensils, toothpicks, etc from flooding the markets? Was there any improvement in the local production of these products?

For use to start the discussion about local products competing with foreign products, a lot needs to be done. For instance, how easy is it to start manufacturing kitchen utensils with the current cost of diesel, double taxation, and inefficient transportation? Also, with the heightened insecurity across the country, rice production is a very risky and expensive venture.

In these cases, most potential producers would likely consider importing the finished or semi-finished produce to sell here. That is what you see Dangote and Bua doing with regards to sugar. They set up a supposed sugar processing factory, when in fact they import raw sugar and then refine it here in Nigeria under the guise of local production..

You are on point man...

.insecurity needs to be put under control too

BIZNess123:

Though a good move..

But this will make the local producers to engage in unnecessary competitions...it will also lead to massive influx of foreign products
Killing local producers

It is better, even buying local products is not easy again

. You have seen it na. Price of things will reduce..

IamANigerianMan:

It is better, even buying local products is not easy again

BIZNess123:
Am not on support of lifting ban on

Cement
Palm kernel
Veg oils
Toothpicks
Tomatoes
Raw meat
Steel (ajoakuta should be fixed)

We produce these items na

Me , I would never buy DANGOTE CEMENT AGAIN, useless thief

Wheel barrow ke. Hahahaahhaha. Chei. Naija

Nice ibeto should open his cement now guys time to import Rice we need crash down this hunger

lexylaw40:
government can get more dollars through other means e.g the mining sector, ( Lithium, Gold, Silver, Iron, steel, limestone, etc.)

More dollars will flow in through our refineries

Which refinery? Dangote is going to be selling in Dollars, no other refinery is operational.