Foreword
The KPMG Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Forum is a platform that offers CFOs the opportunity to discuss issues of common interest and foster interaction with peers across sectors/industries, relevant government regulators, and policymakers.
The KPMG Annual CFO Outlook Survey offers insightful information on how CFOs and organisations view the prevailing business environment, their expectations of government/policymakers, and the responses to their business challenges.
In the last twelve (12) months, organisations in Nigeria have continued to experience numerous challenges, which has negatively impacted their businesses. These challenges include volatile and inadequate FX; high and rising cost of funds, energy, transport and distribution costs; constrained consumer demand in a high inflation environment, exacerbated by the cash scarcity linked to the recent Naira redesign policy. Furthermore, heightened political and economic uncertainty as a result of the 2023 general election appears to have delayed and negatively impacted investment decisions by businesses. Consequently, CFOs have been facing the increasingly difficult task of sustaining business stability, growth and profitability in order to enhance value for all stakeholders.
In this year’s survey, we obtained the views of CFOs on the economic outlook and prospects for growth for their respective organisations and industries, including the expected priority areas of focus for government in order to improve the business environment. Also under consideration are key agenda items for CFOs that will most significantly impact the overall effectiveness of their finance function.
Our survey revealed low optimism on the growth of the economy in the immediate term. Respondents expressed much higher levels of optimism for their companies growth and performance in 2023 compared to their industry and the overall economy. One of the major imperatives highlighted for government by the survey is the need to prioritise enhancing the business environment to support existing businesses and encourage new entrants.
Furthermore, in line with the trend in previous CFO Surveys, the top three areas identified as priorities for the government were foreign exchange stability, provision of infrastructure, and improved security. Likewise, at the organisational level, CFOs continue to identify FX Stability and Supply; Tax, Regulatory & Government Policy direction; and Cost Management as their top three (3) “stay awake” issues. Most of the CFOs highlighted the importance of adopting lean finance principles and capabilities to drive organisational efficiency, improve financial performance, and provide a competitive advantage for organisations operating in Nigeria’s dynamic and rapidly evolving economic landscape. Also, standardising and integrating finance processes, leveraging advanced technology, applying data analytics for decision-making, and investing in talent management were all identified as key drivers of success.
We hope you find our 2023 CFO Outlook Survey insightful. On behalf of KPMG, I would like to thank all the CFOs who participated in the survey and those who spared their valuable time to be interviewed. We look forward to engaging with you further on the insights from the survey.
In order to be part of the discussions, please join the KPMG CFO Forum page on LinkedIn via this link: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12072623/. KPMG’s partners and professionals remain committed to providing a platform for articulating issues of concern to CFOs for the improvement of the overall business environment and the finance function.
