The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, asserted that individuals alleging the existence of an uncleared foreign exchange backlog should approach the open market to verify the situation. Cardoso, speaking on Tuesday at the conclusion of the 294th Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja, reiterated that all legitimate FX backlogs had been addressed. He emphasized that the central bank had resolved all valid forex backlogs amidst the ongoing strengthening of the Naira against the US dollar in the forex market.

“As far as the Central Bank of Nigeria is concerned, all legitimate foreign exchange backlogs have been addressed. We also recognize that there may be some stakeholders who still have outstanding FX obligations. We have made efforts to ensure the market is open, transparent, and liquid. Therefore, those particular stakeholders can participate in the market to settle their obligations. Nonetheless, we have fulfilled verified contractual backlogs,” he stated.

On March 20, 2024, the CBN announced the clearance of the pending $7 billion forex backlog. However, Kingsley Nwokoma, the President of the Association of Foreign Airlines and Representatives in Nigeria (AFARN), disputed this assertion.