As part of measures to give economic stimulus palliatives during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Government has through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), provide N1 trillion loans to boost local manufacturing and production across critical sectors.
The apex bank also made provision for N100 billion credit support for the healthcare industry particularly pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, and health practitioners, that want to start new or expand existing drug manufacturing or healthcare facilities.
The Director-General, National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) Abubakar Sulaiman stated this at Webinar hosted by the Institute on the assessment of Federal Government policy on the distribution of COVID-19 palliatives and other humanitarian.
According to Sulaiman, other economic measures by CBN during the pandemic include: “creation of a N50 billion targeted credit scheme for households, small and medium-sized enterprises that have been particularly hard hit, including but not limited to hoteliers, airline service providers, healthcare merchants.
“Extension of a moratorium on all principal repayments of its intervention facilities for one year, effective from 1 March 2020 (for those whose contractual moratorium is still effective as of date, the additional one-year moratorium will take effect from the end of the contractual moratorium);
reduction of interest rates on all CBN intervention facilities from 9% to 5% per annum for one year effective 1 March 2020.
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“Regulatory forbearance in form of leave granted to Deposit Money Banks (“DMBs”) to consider temporary and time-bound restructuring of the tenor and loan terms for businesses and households adversely impacted;
strengthening of the CBN Loan to Deposit Ratio (LDR) policy by supporting industry funding levels to maintain DMBs’ capacity to direct credit to individuals, households, and businesses and by indicating readiness to consider additional incentives to encourage the extension of longer-tenured credit facilities”.
He also noted that the Federal Government encouraged the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to introduce measures in response to the disruption caused to the federal tax sector by the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.
Sulaiman identified the measures as: “Extension of the timeline for filing of Value Added Tax and Withholding Tax from the 21st day to the last working day of the month following the month of deduction.
“Extension of the due date for filing of Companies’ Income Tax returns by one month (“revised due date of filing”); filing of tax returns by taxpayers without Audited Financial Statements (provided that the Financial Statements would be submitted within 2 months of the revised due date of filing).
“Use of electronic platforms for payment of taxes and processing of Tax Clearance Certificates; proposed creation of a portal where documents required for desk reviews and tax audits will be uploaded by taxpayers for online access by the tax authority; and facility for submission of tax returns online by taxpayers via efiling.firs.gov.ng or by designated e-mail accounts published by the FIRS”.
He added that during the COVID-19 lockdown, the Federal Government in collaboration with the Private Sector under the Coalition Against COVID-19 (CACOVID) garnered relief materials including food items to vulnerable Nigerians whose means of livelihood were adversely impacted while the CBN under the CACOVID alliance was reported to have raised over N20 Billion expended to set up isolation centres, procure medical supplies, face masks and other relief items.
The NILDS Boss however said there were challenges with implementing and monitoring the mechanisms and Government’s policy regulating the distribution of COVID-19 Palliatives in Nigeria which the Institute invited major stakeholders on an assessment discuss of the distribution of both the government palliatives and that of the private /corporate sector contributions coordinated by CACOVID.
He said the webinar was designed to spur extensive policy discussion which aims at reviewing the entire distribution process of the COVID-19 Palliatives by the Federal Government; strengthening the Relief Distribution Mechanism for enhanced humanitarian emergency preparedness and driving policy change in humanitarian and emergency response.
