Our Reforms Have Restored Macroeconomic Stability — Tinubu

 

Our Reforms Have Restored Macroeconomic Stability — Tinubu

…Asks Ministers To Urgently Review, Optimise Savings
…FEC Okays $34m For Transformers, N5.2bn Related Expenses
…Slams 7-Year Ban On Establishing New Tertiary Institutions

ABUJA – President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday gave his administration thumbs up, say­ing that its reforms have dismantled long­standing distortions in the economy and restored macroeconomic stability.

Tinubu, who presided over the Feder­al Executive Council (FEC) meeting, lec­tured his cabinet members on the need to optimise public savings to finance growth sustainably.

He said the country is now poised to actualise its $1 trillion economy by 2030.

Recall that upon assuming of­fice as president in 2023, Tinubu effected a number of economic reforms some of which culmi­nated in the floating of the naira as well as removal of subsidy on petroleum products.

The development unsettled the national economy for months be­fore a semblance of calm started returning to the polity.

Tinubu while addressing his cabinet members, boasted that macroeconomic stability has been restored, a situation he not­ed puts the country in better stead for investment opportunities, both public and private.

Tinubu’s said, “Distinguished members of the Federal Execu­tive Council, let me begin by expressing my sincere apprecia­tion for your unwavering commit­ment, resilience, and hard work in supporting this administration’s reform agenda.

“Together, we have implement­ed bold and difficult reforms that have dismantled longstanding distortions in our economy and restored policy credibility. These reforms have enhanced our eco­nomic resilience and restored macroeconomic stability.

“It has created a transparent and competitive business environ­ment, and bolstered investor con­fidence. As a result, our economy is now better positioned to attract both domestic and foreign private investment, investment that is critical to stimulating sustained growth, creating decent jobs, and lifting millions of Nigerians out of poverty.

“Our Renewed Hope Agenda remains focused on achieving a $1 trillion economy by the year 2030. To realise this vision, we must now accelerate our efforts to achieve a minimum growth rate of 7.0% by 2027”.

Tinubu also lamented low public investment share to GDP which stands at 5.0%, attributing it largely to insufficient public savings.

In his estimation, the country must take urgent steps to review and optimise our savings which should include enhancing spend­ing efficiency, and reviewing deductions from the Federation Account such as the cost of col­lection by revenue agencies such as FIRS, Customs, NUPRIC and NIMASA.

Speaking further, “This is not just an economic target it is a mor­al imperative. Stimulating high­er growth is the only sustainable path to solving the poverty chal­lenge in Nigeria. The recent IMF Article IV Report published in July 2025, also affirms this trajec­tory and underscores the impor­tance of investment-led growth.

“In line with our commit­ment to inclusive development, I recently launched the Renewed Hope Ward Development Pro­gramme—a ward-based initiative covering all 8,809 wards across the 774 local government areas in Ni­geria.

“This programme is close to my heart. It is designed to em­power active grassroots econom­ic players, using a micro-level approach to tackle poverty. We aim to bring sub-national govern­ments and private sector partners on board to ensure efficient and impactful implementation”.

The president also reiterated his vision to ensure inclusive growth at the grassroots level, stressing his charge to members of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum recently to trickle down resources to those at the last tier of gover­nance.

Tinubu repeated, “Last week, I addressed the National Economic Council and urged our governors to accelerate growth by priori­tising productivity-enhancing investments, strengthening food security, and deepening collabora­tion with local governments.

“These efforts are essential to fully addressing the poverty challenge and ensuring that no Nigerian is left behind.

“Let me emphasise the criti­cal role of savings in catalysing investment and growth. Current­ly, public investment as a share of GDP stands at a low 5.0%, largely due to insufficient public savings. We must urgently review and op­timise our savings. This includes enhancing spending efficiency, and reviewing deductions from the Federation Account such as the cost of collection by revenue agencies such as FIRS, Customs, NUPRIC and NIMASA etc.

“There is also the need to re­assess the 30% management fee and the 30% frontier exploration deduction by NNPC based on the Petroleum Industry Act.

“We must optimise every available naira to sustain our mo­mentum and finance our growth trajectory-especially in a time of global liquidity constraints.

“Accordingly, I am directing the Economic Management Team, chaired by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Min­ister of the Economy, to conduct a comprehensive review of all deductions and revenue retention practices, and present actionable recommendations to this Council for an optimal way forward.

“Distinguished members of this accomplished Federal Exec­utive Council, the task ahead is great, but so is our resolve. Let us continue to work together with unity of purpose, guided by the Renewed Hope Agenda, to build a prosperous, inclusive, and resil­ient Nigeria”.

FEC Okays $34m For Transformers, N5.2bn For Associated Costs

The Federal Government has taken another leap to boost power supply in the country, a feat that would see it injecting at least $34 million to procure transformers with an additional N5.2 billion budgeted to cover associated costs.

This much was gleaned from a total of four memoranda pre­sented by the Ministry of Power, at the FEC meeting, presided over by President Bola Tinubu.

Speaking further on the ap­provals, the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, said the in­vestments are geared towards modernising ageing transmission infrastructure, enhance supply reliability and meet the growing demand for electricity across the country.

The first approval, he dis­closed, was for the release of N13 billion as compensation for right-of-way acquisitions under the Lagos Industrial Transmission Project.

According to Adelabu, the project is being funded through a $238 million development loan from the Japan International Co­operation Agency (JICA) and is targeted at improving supply to key industrial clusters in Lagos, which collectively account for a significant portion of Nigeria’s manufacturing output.

“This funding covers com­pensation to property owners and communities affected by the transmission lines’ route. Once completed, the Lagos Industrial Transmission Project will ensure that our industrial estates have the dedicated, stable power they need to drive economic growth and create jobs,” Adelabu ex­plained.

The other three approvals, according to the minister, focus on the procurement and instal­lation of high-capacity power transformers to replace weak, overloaded and obsolete units on the national grid.

“The total value of the trans­former procurement is $34 mil­lion, with an additional N5.2 bil­lion budgeted to cover associated costs”.

 

Irked by proliferation of tertia­ry institutions across the country, the Federal Government has placed a seven-year moratorium on the establishment of new fed­eral universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.

It hinged its decision on the need to refocus resources on im­proving existing institutions.

The government came to the resolution at the FEC meeting fol­lowing a memo presented by the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa.

Alausa told State House cor­respondents after the meeting that access to tertiary education in Nigeria was “no longer the problem.”

Rather, he said, the unchecked duplication of federal tertiary in­stitutions had led to alarming in­efficiencies, poor infrastructure, inadequate staffing, and declining student enrolment.

According to him, several fed­eral universities operate far below capacity, with some having fewer than 2,000 students. In one north­ern institution, the minister dis­closed there are 1,200 staff serving fewer than 800 students.

“This is a waste of govern­ment resources. Today, we have 199 universities where fewer than 100 candidates applied through JAMB for admission. In fact, 34 universities recorded zero appli­cations,” he said.

“The situation is not limited to universities. Out of 295 poly­technics nationwide, many had fewer than 99 applicants last year, while 219 colleges of education re­corded similarly poor enrolment. Sixty-four colleges of education had no applicants at all.