The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has formally scheduled the 304th meeting of its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) for February 23 and February 24, 2026. This announcement was made through an official circular released on the apex bank’s website.
The MPC is the apex policy-making body of the CBN. It is responsible for setting Nigeria’s monetary and credit policies with the goal of maintaining price stability and guiding monetary conditions in the economy.
Meeting deliberations will be held at the CBN’s headquarters in Abuja. The circular states the schedule as follows: “The 304th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is scheduled to hold as follows,” with “Day 1: Monday, February 23, 2026 – Time: 10.00 a.m.” and “Day 2: Tuesday, February 24, 2026 – Time: 8.00 a.m.” The session will take place in the MPC Meeting Room on the 11th floor of the CBN Head Office in Abuja.
This meeting comes at a time when the CBN continues efforts to control inflation, stabilise the foreign exchange market, and improve broader macroeconomic conditions. These priorities have defined the central bank’s recent policy stance as it seeks to address persistent economic challenges.
The MPC consists of the CBN Governor, Deputy Governors, board members, and external appointees. It meets regularly to assess key economic indicators, including inflation trends, gross domestic product (GDP) performance, and exchange rate developments. After evaluating these metrics, the committee decides on policy actions aimed at ensuring financial stability.
In recent meetings, the CBN has maintained a relatively tight monetary policy stance. At the November 2025 gathering, the committee held the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) at 27 percent. The CBN has argued that keeping the MPR elevated is necessary to rein in inflationary pressures and support stability in the foreign exchange market, even though higher rates can increase borrowing costs for businesses.
Earlier in 2025, at the September MPC session, the CBN reduced the MPR by 50 basis points, bringing it down from 27.5 percent to 27 percent. Alongside this adjustment, the committee narrowed the asymmetric corridor around the MPR from +500/-100 basis points to +250/-250 basis points. These changes were interpreted as signs of cautious adjustment in policy, reflecting modest improvements in inflation indicators.
At the 303rd meeting, the committee largely opted for policy continuity. The MPR remained at 27.00 percent, the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) stood at 45.00 percent for Deposit Money Banks and 16.00 percent for merchant banks, and the Liquidity Ratio was unchanged at 30.0 percent. The asymmetric corridor was fine-tuned to +50/-450 basis points, indicating a subtle shift in liquidity management without altering the headline rate.
Recent inflation data may shape discussions at the February meeting. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, headline inflation eased to 15.15 percent in December 2025 from 17.33 percent in November. On a year-on-year basis, inflation also declined sharply compared with the previous year. The CBN has emphasised that sustained stability in prices, rather than short-term fluctuations, will be central to policy decisions.
The 304th MPC meeting will therefore be a critical platform for the central bank to evaluate economic dynamics and set its policy direction for the months ahead.
