‘It’s a difficult time for Nigeria,’ Finance minister says

monjola sotubo

September 1, 2016 1:17 PM

Mrs Adeosun also said that the country is in its “worst possible time” as the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that the economy is now in recession.

Nigeria's Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun speaks at a news conference in Lagos, Nigeria, April 9, 2016. REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye

Mrs Adeosun also said that the country is in its “worst possible time” as the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that the economy is now in recession.

The minister made the comments on Wednesday, August 31, 2016, while speaking to journalists at the Presidential Villa in Abuja after the Federal Executive Council meeting.

“It’s the worst possible time for us. Are we confused? Absolutely not,” the minister said according to Punch.

“I think that we have a long way to go. We’re not confused and we’re not deceiving ourselves that everything is rosy. It’s not.

“It’s a difficult time for Nigeria but I think Nigeria is in the right hands and if we can stick with our strategy…We still have some adjustments to make. I think we need to make some adjustments in monetary policy,” she added.

The NBS, on Wednesday, released a report showing that 4.58 million Nigerians have lost their jobs since President Muhammadu Buhari came into office.

ALSO READ: Nigeria to borrow more from abroad as recession hits - Kemi Adeosun

According to the NBS, 2.6 million Nigerians became unemployed within the first and second quarter of 2016, 1.46 million Nigerians became unemployed in the third quarter of 2015 and another 518,102 became unemployed in the fourth quarter of 2015.

monjola sotubo