International rating agency, Standard and Poors
(S&P) has said although Nigeria’s security state has grown worse, it is yet
to destabilise the country.
This is as the agency said it will release the
rating of some Nigerian banks later in the year.
The rating agency in March this year lowered its
rating of Nigeria from BB+ to negative, before the abduction of more than 200
schoolgirls by the militant group, Boko Haram, in April, and as other attacks
by the insurgents ravaged the northern part of the country, a rating that was
criticised and appealed against by the Nigerian government.
The S&P’s director in sovereign ratings, Ravi
Bhatia, said the rating agency’s officials are watching security issues in both
Nigeria and Kenya.
“Boko Haram was part of what we considered when we
put Nigeria on a negative outlook. It has gotten slightly worse and is a
growing concern, however, it is not yet at this point destabilising the
Nigerian state,” Ravi stated.
S&P also said it is talking to some Kenyan banks
and companies about future credit ratings.
Borrowers across the continent are looking to tap
into international capital markets following successful bond sales by African
countries.
A long-awaited rating for Tanzania is not likely to
be assigned any time soon, however, S&P’s Konrad Reuss told a news briefing
in London.
“More Nigerian bank ratings will be coming out later
this year… we are working on a number of corporate organisations in the
region,” Reuss said.
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