The introduction of the “Race to $200 Billion in FX Repatriation” (RT200 FX) by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has spurred significant improvement in the country’s export remittances, the apex bank has revealed.
The Principal Manager, Trade and Exchange Department, CBN, Mrs. Anne Nnenna Ezekhennagha, disclosed this at the recently concluded Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) 2022 annual conference with the theme “Boosting domestic capacity for sustainable export earnings”, held in Lagos.
The CBN introduced the RT200 policy in February this year to reduce the country’s exposure to volatile sources of foreign exchange and improve sustainable forex inflow by giving rebates to exporters who repatriate their proceeds within a specific period of time.
The policy seeks to raise $200 billion in the next five years in forex earnings from non-oil sources by giving N35 for every dollar repatriated through the Investors ‘and Exporters’ Forex window.
Ezekhennagha said the CBN had paid rebates to exporters who have taken the opportunity of the RT200 scheme in the first two quarters of the year and will commence another series of examinations and verification exercises so that the third quarter rebates would be paid.
“We have seen significant improvement, not just in the figures that have been repatriated, but also in the number of exporters that are now willing to come to the formal sector. A lot of our exports have been happening informally, but with this scheme, we have found that a lot more players in the export sector are willing to come to the formal sector.” she asserted.
She added that there has also been a significant increase in the number of commodities that are exported from Nigeria, saying for instance, “regarding the solid minerals, we are seeing more and more players in that sector coming into the formal sector to report their exports and participate in the RT200 FX scheme. So, I would say it has been very successful so far.”
