The study investigated whether the depreciation of exchange rate has a favourable impact on trade balance in Nigeria, based on the Marshall-Lerner (ML) condition. The Johansen method of cointegration and vector error correction methodology (VECM) was employed to investigate the existence of a long-run relationship between trade balance and the specified set of independent variables. The results confirm the satisfaction of the Marshall-Lerner condition in Nigeria, implying that depreciation of the exchange rate has a positive effect on trade balance in the long run. The study also established that a one per cent depreciation in the exchange rate would improve trade balance by 1.16 per cent. In the light of these findings, the study recommends a gradual depreciation of the exchange rate, which should be accompanied with export policy that encourages domestic production of non-oil products for exports.
The study tests the assertion that greater lending to microfinance female clients leads to an improvement in repayment rate. The study uses unbalanced panel data framework of 752 microfinance banks (MFBs) in Nigeria during the period 2011 to 2014. Findings from the regressions confirm a positive impact of female inclusion on loan repayment rate. A higher proportion of female clients is associated with a greater repayment rate and with fewer loan provisions. The study recommends that microfinance banks should target specifically women clients in Nigeria, as greater lending to them will improve outreach to the poor.
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