Nigeria’s foremost business group, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), has tasked the country’s economic managers to promote the ease of doing business, improve people’s living conditions and enhance the capacity of many businesses in 2014.
The private Guardian newspaper reported Monday that LCCI, in its economic outlook for 2014, also stressed the need for an effective risk management strategies as well as to proactively prepare for economic policy pressures that may result from the expected increased political activities this year, ahead of 2015 general elections.
LCCI President Remi Bello said the nation’s economy in 2014 would be characterised largely by macroeconomic and investment climate conditions that prevailed in 2013, noting that the GDP growth would remain strong at over 6%, relative to global average of 3.1%.
He said the positive outlook of the global economy would impact positively on crude oil prices, which could serve to sustain the current growth momentum of the Nigerian economy.
The LCCI President also said while pre-election activities may take its toll on the economy through distractions of partisan politics and heightened election spending, the resilience of the economy would endure.
“For instance there will be high political risk this year being a pre-election year, and with current developments in the political space, political risk will be high in 2014. As the political activities begin to gather momentum in the run up to the 2015 election, transactions or projects that are public sector driven will be more vulnerable.
”It is therefore advised that from 2014, exposure to big public sector transactions of long-term nature should be undertaken within this context,” the LCCI boss said,
He said moderate inflation risks should be expected, as it would be difficult to keep inflation within single digits in 2014, given the various variables that would generate pressures on prices, while the interest rate regime in 2014 is expected to be high and volatile.
