The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said Nigeria received Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of over $67 billion between 2000 and 2013.
The Governor of CBN, Godwin Emefiele, disclosed this at his conferment on him of the Honorary Fellowship of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) at the 2014 CIBN Investiture, weekend.
He assured that the apex bank would continue to strive to build and maintain a healthy external reserves position to contribute to laying the foundation for a vibrant economy that attracts significant FDI.
Emefiele, who spoke on the theme, “Making Nigeria a Major Destination for Foreign Direct Investment”  said the apex bank was also creating policies that lead to macro-economic stability and growth, adding that price stability would remain  the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC’s) role in the short and medium term.
Meanwhile, Emefiele hinted that Nigeria’s foreign reserves, which stand at $39.5 billion can withstand nine-month import cover against the three months international standard.
He also noted that with the nation’s “GDP of over N80 trillion, average growth rates of about five per cent between 2010 and 2013, and economic expansion that is driven by the non-oil sector, it was obvious that the Nigerian economy was not only growing, but diverse with opportunities across multiple sectors such as services, e-commerce, arts and crafts, manufacturing, entertainment and agriculture.”
The governor disclosed that CBN was working with government in developing monetary and fiscal policies that will ensure that the country is not negatively affected by the declining oil prices.
Emefiele, however, affirmed that under his leadership, CBN would sustain the managed float regime in the management of the exchange rate, as this would allow the bank to intervene when necessary to offset pressures on the exchange rates.
According to him, to encourage both local and foreign investments, CBN is introducing a broad spectrum of financial instruments to boost sector-specific enterprise areas in agriculture, SMEs, manufacturing, and oil and gas.
He said that CBN under his leadership will have zero tolerance for policies that undermine financial sector stability.
He advised bankers to be honest and exhibit highest level of ethics in the course of their duties. “We want sound corporate governance and professional ethics,” he said.
Speaking at the event, President/Chairman of CIBN, Mrs. ‘Debola Osibogun, noted that the awardees have, out of the dint of hard work, carved out enviable niches for themselves in their various careers and found to have exhibited high professional skills, competence and expertise in the various organisations that have been fortunate to engage their services.
She affirmed that the institute remains in the vanguard of best practice, with the recently launched Code of Conduct for the Nigerian banking industry being the major step to ensure that its members observe sound ethical standard both in and off the job.

FDI: Nigeria received over $67bn in 13yrs –CBN