Experts task CBN on sector's lost confidence

FINANCIAL experts on Tuesday urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to take the necessary measures to ensure that the banking industry regainedpublic confidence.They made the call in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.The former president of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Maxi Unegbu, advised the CBNto focus more on improving the banking industry, describing it as the molecule of development in any economy.Unegbu said that often,politicians feltthat the banking sub-sector was not important, adding thatthe government should be concerned about the performance of the banks even though they private sector institutions. He argued that an unhealthy banking sector would have a negative impact on the economy.Also speaking, Mr. Segun Aina, the current president of the institute, notedthat Nigerian banks had performed well, compared to their counterparts all over the world, in spite of themany challenges they had experienced inthepast two years.The CIBN boss said that with the CBN intervention, the banks were getting stronger and were now in abetter position to provide loans to various categoriesof people.He called for the training and re-training of bank staff in view of the risks they faced. 'There is the need for training and re-training of staff to mitigatethe challenges that can arise from the risks.''In his contribution,Mr. Lugard Aimiuwu,the president of the National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria (NIMN), urgedthat the CBN and other banks to evolvedifferent funding mechanisms for the various sectors of the economy.Aimiuwusaid that although banks were already involved in micro lending to small and big industries, there was still the need for improved access to credit facilities to enhance productivity.He, therefore, advised the Federal Government and the CBN to continue to evolve new schemes and programmes to support various sectors of the economy. This, he said, would ensure continued growth of the nation's economy.
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