PRESIDENT Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared that his administration’s economic reforms are working, two years after he assumed office.
In an address marking the second anniversary of his government on May 29, Tinubu commended his decision to remove fuel subsidy, the unification of exchange rates, and a raft of tax and fiscal policies, which he said were necessary steps to put Nigeria on a path to stability and growth.
“Inflation has begun to ease, with rice prices and other staples declining,” Tinubu said, adding “The oil and gas sector is recovering; rig counts are up by over 400 per cent in 2025 compared to 2021, and over $8 billion in new investments have been committed. We have stabilised our economy and are now better positioned for growth and prepared to withstand global shocks.”
He claimed that the government’s reforms raised state revenue by N6 trillion in 2024, reduced fiscal deficit, and boosted external reserves by 500 per cent.
“Our debt position is improving. While foreign exchange revaluation pushed our debt-to-GDP ratio to around 53 per cent, our debt service-to-revenue ratio dropped from nearly 100 per cent in 2022 to under 40 per cent by 2024. We paid off our IMF obligations and grew our net external reserves by almost 500 per cent from $4 billion in 2023 to over $23 billion by the end of 2024.
“Thanks to our reforms, state revenue increased by over N6 trillion in 2024, ensuring that subnational governments can reduce their debt burden, meet salaries and pension obligations on a timely basis, and invest more in critical infrastructure and human capital development,” Tinubu said.
While the president maintained the worst was over, The ICIR reports that millions of Nigerians continue to struggle with high living costs and shrinking incomes.
The gap between policy gains and everyday struggles remains stark as the impact of fuel prices, which have soared since the subsidy removal, is still enormous on people in the country.
While Tinubu lauded his administration’s tax reforms as ‘fairer’ and aimed at @reducing the burden on small businesses, “traders, artisans, and low-income families continue to grapple with rising costs and shrinking purchasing power.
Tinubu acknowledged the pain of his reforms but argued they were necessary to prevent a “fiscal crisis that would have bred runaway inflation, external debt default, and an economy in free fall.”
He pointed to improvements in tax collection, increased investments in solid minerals, and ongoing upgrades in healthcare and education as signs of progress.
Tinubu also claimed his administration was eliminating multiple taxation, adding that the tax reforms would protect low-income households and support workers by expanding their disposable income.
“Essential goods and services such as food, education, and healthcare will now attract zero per cent VAT. Rent, public transportation and renewable energy will be fully exempted from VAT to reduce household costs further.
“We are ending the era of wasteful and opaque tax waivers. Instead, we have introduced targeted and transparent incentives supporting high-impact manufacturing, technology, and agriculture sectors. These reforms are not just about revenue but about stimulating inclusive economic growth,” the president.
“We have breathed new life into the solid minerals sector as part of our efforts to diversify the economy. Revenue has increased phenomenally, and investors are setting up processing plants as the sector dumps the old pit-to-port policy and embraces a new value-added policy,” he added.
The president further stressed that his administration was revitalising over 1,000 primary health centres (PHCs) nationwide.
He added that an additional 5,500 PHCs were being upgraded under our Renewed Hope Health Agenda.
“We are establishing six new cancer treatment centres. Three are ready. We offer free dialysis services in pilot tertiary hospitals and subsidise the service in others. Under the Presidential Maternal Health Initiative, over 4,000 women have undergone free cesarean sections. Lastly, we have expanded health insurance coverage from 16 million to 20 million within two years,” he stressed.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M