The Federal Government on Thursday declared that the difficult economic reforms undertaken by the President Bola Tinubu administration are beginning to deliver greater stability, saying its next priority is to translate the gains into jobs, higher incomes and improved living standards for Nigerians.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume, said the administration was now entering a consolidation phase in which economic stability would be converted into sustainable growth and shared prosperity across the country.
Akume spoke in Abuja at the world press conference flagging off activities marking Nigeria’s 66th Independence Anniversary, scheduled for October 1, with the theme, ‘From Reforms to Stability: Consolidating Nigeria’s Renewed Hope for Shared Prosperity’.
According to the SGF, the administration has laid the foundations for a stronger economy through structural reforms introduced since 2023 and would now concentrate on ensuring that their benefits reach ordinary Nigerians.
‘The task before us today, as leaders and citizens, is consolidation. We must ensure that the gains from reform translate into better opportunities for ordinary Nigerians’, Akume said.
He recalled that the administration took what he described as difficult but necessary decisions in its first year, including ending the decades-long petrol subsidy regime, unifying foreign exchange windows and tightening fiscal and monetary policies.
He said the measures were designed to restore fiscal balance, stabilise the economy and create a stronger foundation for investment and growth, adding that the administration would now accelerate revenue mobilisation and attract additional investments.
‘Every step is geared towards turning stability into growth, and growth into prosperity for all’, he said.
Akume said the government was equally accelerating investment in roads, railways, airports, seaports, electricity generation and transmission as well as digital connectivity to reduce the cost of doing business, connect farmers with markets and stimulate industrial development.
He said agriculture remained central to the administration’s economic strategy, with government supporting farmers through improved seeds, fertilisers, irrigation, storage and processing facilities to increase food production and develop agro-industrial value chains.
The SGF also highlighted interventions in education, healthcare and social protection, saying the government was determined to ensure that vulnerable Nigerians were protected while the wider economy adjusted to the reforms.
He cited the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, Conditional Cash Transfer, NG-CARES, School Feeding and vocational training initiatives among programmes designed to widen opportunities and cushion vulnerable groups.
‘No one in poverty should be forgotten as we build the foundations for broader prosperity’, Akume said.
On security, the SGF said operations by the Armed Forces and security agencies against terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and oil theft were yielding progress, maintaining that the surge in insecurity was being gradually contained through sustained operations.
He said government was strengthening intelligence capabilities, modernising equipment, improving coordination among security agencies and communities, strengthening border security and investing in community policing.
Akume also disclosed that President Tinubu had approved the development of a new National Threat Assessment and a five-year Defence Plan aimed at providing a coherent national security strategy.
According to him, the administration’s objective is to achieve ‘a Nigeria where every parent can send their child to school, every market can trade without fear, and every community can thrive in safety’.
He nevertheless acknowledged that challenges remained, including poverty, insecurity and deficiencies in power, roads, ports, healthcare and education, saying the administration was determined to confront them through consistent policies and stronger institutions.
Akume said the Renewed Hope Ward Development Programme would also ensure that the benefits of economic growth reach communities across the federation through support for grassroots activities in agriculture, trade, mining and other productive sectors.
He stressed that the private sector would remain central to the government’s development strategy by leading investment, innovation and job creation, while government provides a stable policy environment, transparent regulation and stronger institutions.
Reflecting on Nigeria’s journey since independence on October 1, 1960, the SGF said the country had overcome enormous challenges, including the Civil War and prolonged military rule, while preserving its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He particularly highlighted Nigeria’s 27 years of uninterrupted constitutional democracy since 1999, describing it as the longest continuous period of civilian government in the nation’s history and an important foundation for stability.
Akume said Nigeria had also diversified from its earlier dependence on agriculture and oil, with telecommunications, banking, manufacturing and services emerging as important pillars of economic activity, alongside the development of globally recognised entrepreneurs, professionals, scientists, artists and athletes.
‘Our diversity is a strength, not a weakness. The rich tapestry of ethnicities, languages and religions that make up Nigeria must unite us in purpose’, he said.
Looking beyond the anniversary, Akume said the administration would remain focused on consolidating reforms, deepening stability and delivering growth under the Renewed Hope National Development Plan 2026-2030, with productivity, diversification, human capital development and resilience as priorities.
‘From reforms, we have built stability. From stability, let us now deepen growth and opportunity. And from growth, let us extend shared prosperity to every corner of Nigeria’, he said.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, who was among functionaries that spoke at the press conference, also said Nigeria was moving beyond the most difficult phase of economic reforms towards growth, production and shared prosperity.
Idris said the administration inherited significant structural and fiscal challenges in 2023 but chose to confront longstanding economic distortions rather than postpone difficult decisions.
While acknowledging that Nigerians had borne costs arising from the adjustments, he said GDP growth was strengthening, the country’s external position had improved, domestic refining capacity had expanded and investment and productive activity were gaining momentum.
‘Today, however, Nigeria is moving from reform and stabilisation towards growth, production and shared prosperity’, the minister said.
He said the next phase was to ensure that those gains translated into more jobs, higher incomes, increased access to education and credit, lower costs and wider economic opportunities.
Idris said interventions in infrastructure, agriculture, education, consumer credit, digital skills, energy and enterprise were geared towards building an economy increasingly driven by domestic production and value addition.
‘The principle is simple: Nigeria must increasingly produce what it consumes, process what it extracts, and create opportunities from its abundant human and natural resources’, he said.
Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, said the security situation affecting agricultural production had improved significantly compared with conditions experienced in 2023 and 2024.
Kyari, however, said climate change had emerged as a major challenge to food production, particularly because of increasingly irregular weather and rainfall patterns.
The government officials urged Nigerians to use the 66th Independence Anniversary to reflect on the country’s resilience and renew their commitment to building a more prosperous, secure and united nation.