8 years after : FG lifts forex ban on importation of rice, 42 items

8 years after : FG lifts forex ban on importation of rice, 42 items

The Federal Government through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN),
has lifted the foreign exchange ban on importation of rice, cement and 41 other items previously restricted from the official window.

The pronouncement is coming 8 years after the CBN placed a restriction on forex accessibility for these items through its official window.

Our investigation revealed that importation of these items into the country was not banned, neither were these items prohibited. The Government only restricted the importers of these items from getting forex from the official window of the CBN. Meaning that importers were to source for foreign exchange on their own, in order to bring in these products.

The items are ;
* Cement
* Rice
* Margarine
* Meat/ processed meat products
* Palm kernel-palm oil products
* Vegetable oils
* Vegetables – processed vegetable products
* Poultry products- chicken/eggs
* Private airplanes/jets
* Indian incense
* Tinned fish in sauce /sardines
* Galvanised steel sheets
* Roofing sheets
* Wheelbarrows
* Metal boxes and containers
* Steel drums
*Steel pipes
*Iron rods- bars
* Steel nails
Wooden doors
* Furniture
* Toothpicks
* Glass and glassware
* Kitchen utensils
Textiles
* Woven fabrics
* Clothes
* Maize/corn.
* Fertilizer
* Soap and cosmetics
* Tomato/tomato paste, among others.

Recall that in 2015, the Apex Bank restricted importers of these items from accessing forex from the country’s official market.

The CBN lifted that ban yesterday Thursday, October 12, 2023 through an official pronouncement. As such, importers of these items can now access forex from the official window of the CBN.