The Federal Government has approved the establishment of an inter-agency committee to harmonise the macroeconomic assumptions used for budgeting and economic planning, as it seeks to improve fiscal coordination and accelerate growth in key sectors.
The decision was taken on Monday, in Abuja, at a meeting of the Economic Management Team (EMT), the government’s principal platform for economic management and policy coordination.
The committee will harmonise key assumptions covering crude oil prices and production, exchange rates, inflation and non-oil revenue projections used by fiscal and monetary authorities.
The move followed a joint budget retreat and technical validation workshop which identified inconsistent assumptions among government agencies as one of the factors contributing to budget under-performance.
The committee will also address inconsistencies in the reporting of key economic indicators to government, external stakeholders and the public.
The EMT reviewed the state of the economy, noting that real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rose to 4.43 per cent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026, the strongest quarterly performance since the third quarter of 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
The government added that the economy had also recorded improvements in external reserves and the foreign exchange market.
External reserves rose above $54 billion in early September, their highest level in nearly 18 years, according to Central Bank of Nigeria data, while the naira strengthened to the N1,300s per dollar.
The meeting noted Nigeria’s reclassification by FTSE Russell from ‘Unclassified’ to ‘Frontier Market’ status, effective from September 21, 2026.
The reclassification marks Nigeria’s return to the index after about three years and is expected to increase the visibility of Nigerian equities among international investors.
The EMT was further briefed that public debt remain below 40 per cent of GDP, while Nigeria’s sovereign credit outlook from Moody’s has improved from stable to positive.
The team noted that Nigeria’s economy, measured in purchasing-power-parity terms, was worth more than $2.2 trillion, highlighting its potential to reach the government’s target of a $1 trillion nominal GDP by 2030.
As part of efforts to strengthen economic governance, the EMT approved a revised Terms of Reference expanding its responsibilities to include macroeconomic performance reviews, stronger fiscal and monetary coordination, monitoring of Renewed Hope Agenda priorities and periodic reviews of Federal Government financing needs.
The team also agreed to meet monthly, with at least two strategic sector reviews included in each sitting.
The Ministry of Finance was designated as the coordinating custodian for national economic data, while relevant agencies will remain responsible for producing and supplying data within their respective mandates.
The EMT also reviewed measures to increase agriculture’s contribution to the $1 trillion economy target.
The strategy includes reducing post-harvest losses, expanding processing and mechanisation, improving export compliance and ensuring that capital releases are made early enough to support planting seasons.
The government is also planning the recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture and a new credit window for smallholder farmers.
It is targeting an increase in agriculture’s share of private-sector credit to 10 per cent by 2030.
The meeting also reviewed preparations for Nigeria to host the Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) in November 2026 and the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) in November 2027 in Lagos.
The events are expected to attract exhibitors, international buyers and, in the case of IATF, African heads of state, with significant trade and investment deals projected.
The Ministry of Finance was tasked with coordinating funding and customs facilitation for the events, in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.
Commenting on the decisions, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy Taiwo Oyedele said the harmonisation of economic assumptions would improve the credibility of government planning.
‘Today’s decisions tighten the link between the numbers we plan with and the actual outturns,’ he said.
According to him, having a single set of assumptions across fiscal and monetary authorities would reduce surprises in the budget and strengthen planning for investors and Nigerians.