According to data from the Central Bank of Nigeria, the currency in circulation in the country rose by ₦1.15 trillion in 2021 to ₦3.33 trillion as of December 2021. 

The development, the highest level to be recorded in the year, is on the back of several monetary policies adopted by the financial regulator to increase liquidity in the economy. 

The data from the money and credit statistics of the CBN showed that the currency in circulation increased by 39.4 percent in the year compared to ₦2.91 trillion recorded as of the end of the previous year. 

The apex bank maintained a subtle monetary approach to stimulate the economy all through the year with the bank retaining the country’s benchmark interest rate (MPR) at 11.5 percent all through 2021 and beginning of 2022; the cash r ratio at 27.5 percent and liquidity ratio at 30 percent. 

The move paid off as the country’s GDP grew by a record high of 5.01 percent in Q2 2021. In a recent MPC communique released, the CBN disbursed ₦75.99 billion to support the cultivation of over 383,000 hectares of maize, rice and wheat during the 2022 dry season, between November and December 2021, under the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP). 

This brings the cumulative disbursements under the Programme to ₦927.94 billion to over 4.5 million smallholder farmers cultivating 21 commodities across the country. Similarly, the central bank also released ₦1.76 billion to finance two (2) large-scale agricultural projects under the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS).