Has the Change in Central Bank Autonomy Legislation Altered the Monetary Transmission Channels in Nigeria?

The transmission process has been observed to vary over different economies of different financial structure and Central Bank autonomy. This study examines the various monetary transmission channels in Nigeria; brief allusion is 1998 CBN Act as a source of changes in the channels. The study then goes ahead to compare the transmission process in the period when the 1991 CBN Act is operational and the period when the 1998 CBN Act is implemented, the latter period been the one when the bank has higher autonomy. Preliminary analysis shows a rising trend for all variables but interest rate and net export. The results of the VAR analysis and variance decomposition tests show that there is no significant change in the monetary transmission channels between the two periods. The major channel identified is the credit channel and although this channel becomes stronger in the second period, researchers cannot statistically distinguish the process of monetary transmission based on the autonomy granted the Central Bank of Nigeria.