Category: Nigerian Tribune

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Tuesday met with security chiefs in the state to review security operations and strengthen measures ahead of the end-of-year festivities and other major activities expected to take place in Lagos.

The meeting, held at the State House, Marina, focused on ongoing security operations and plans to reinforce the state’s security architecture ahead of the expected influx of visitors during the Yuletide.

Sanwo-Olu assured residents and visitors to the state that his administration would continue to prioritise security and prevent criminal activities.

He said, ‘We will not relent on our efforts to ensure that criminals don’t find a place for their evil activities in our state.’

The governor was briefed by the security chiefs on security activities across the state, as well as measures being planned to enhance public safety in the coming months.

Those at the meeting included the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, Tijani Fatai; Commander, 9 Brigade, Ikeja, Brig.-Gen. A.O. Owolabi; Commander, Nigerian Navy Ship Beecroft, Commodore A. Adams-Aliu; Commander, 651 Base Services Group, Ikeja, Air Commodore M.A. Imam; and Executive Secretary, Lagos State Security Trust Fund, Dr Ayodele Ogunsan.

Also present were the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Tayo Ayinde; Secretary to the State Government, Abimbola Hundeyin; and the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro.

The meeting came as Lagos prepares to host President Bola Tinubu from Tuesday, with several official engagements expected during his visit.

The state is also preparing for increased activities during the Yuletide, when a large number of visitors are expected to arrive in Lagos.

Beyond the festive season, the government is also anticipating increased religious, cultural and political activities following the announcement by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that campaigns for the 2027 general elections can commence.

The governor’s meeting with the security chiefs is therefore expected to form part of the state’s preparations to maintain public safety amid the anticipated increase in movement and activities across Lagos.

President Bola Tinubu, on Tuesday, forwarded the names of seven nominees to the Senate for confirmation as chairman and board members of the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the request was contained in a letter addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio by the President.

In the correspondence read by Akpabio during plenary, Dr Abdullahi Saidu was nominated as chairman, alongside Mohammed Asmau, Mohammed Makama, Suleiman Gidado, Louis Ndukwe, Amaechi Ugwele and Olaniyi Onikola as members.

After reading the letter, the Senate President referred the nominations to the Senate Committee on Finance, directing it to report back within two weeks for legislative consideration.

Another executive communication from the President sought consideration of the National Medical College Amendment Bill 2026, proposing changes to the institution and its academic responsibilities and mandate.

According to Tinubu, the proposed bill seeks to strengthen the college’s mandate for postgraduate training and professional examinations in medicine, dentistry and related medical disciplines across Nigeria.

Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has called on the Federal Government to publish the full text of Nigeria’s health agreement with the United States.

Atiku made the call in a statement issued on Tuesday by the Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu.

He said the call became necessary following disclosure by Ghanaian President John Mahama that Ghana rejected a proposed health compact over concerns about medical records, pathogen information, funding obligations and inspection of imported medicines.

‘At this point, Nigerians do not know whether provisions Ghana rejected are in the agreement Tinubu signed. That is precisely why government must publish the full text. Nigerians should not have to guess what has been agreed in their name,’ Atiku said.

Nigeria signed a five-year health Memorandum of Understanding with the United States on 19 December 2025. According to the Federal Ministry of Health, it covers disease surveillance, health data systems and procedures involving pathogen samples. The United States is expected to provide nearly $2 billion in grants, while Nigeria has made health spending commitments projected to mobilise nearly $3 billion over five years.

Atiku said the commitments must be measured against the condition of healthcare at home, noting that the latest internationally comparable estimates put Nigeria’s maternal deaths at 75,000 in 2023.

He also questioned how the administration would fulfil domestic funding commitments, referencing disclosure by the Minister of Health, Prof Muhammad Ali Pate, that at the time of his budget defence, only N36 million had been released from N218 billion appropriated for capital projects and programmes at the Ministry of Health headquarters in 2025.

‘A government that cannot release funds for approved health projects must explain how it intends to honour a multibillion-dollar commitment,’ Atiku said.

He called on the Federal Government to publish the complete Memorandum of Understanding, together with related protocols, annexes, data-sharing arrangements, specimen-sharing agreements and financial undertakings.

He asked whether Nigerians’ medical information or pathogen samples can leave the country, who may access them, what safeguards protect patients, whether NAFDAC retains full authority to inspect medicines and medical products, and what the Federal and state governments have promised to spend.

Atiku said Nigeria welcomes international cooperation that saves lives, but the government must be accountable for the terms it accepts and the results it delivers, adding that the same duty of disclosure applies to other international commitments, including the partnership with France.

The Nigerian naira opened the trading week depreciating against the United States (US) dollar, trading at N1,331.3292 at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) official foreign exchange (FX) window on Monday, September 28, 2026.

The data shared on the CBN’s official platform shows that the naira traded at the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) rate of N1,331.3292 per dollar and closed at N1,331.5000 per dollar.

The currency, which traded at an NFEM rate of N1,329.5138 on September 25, 2026, depreciated slightly by at least N1.82 after trading activities on Monday.

At the parallel market, the buying remained the same while the selling rate decreased by N3 when compared to the previous trading rate on Friday , September 25, 2026.

According to Aboki FX , the Naira-to-dollar exchange rate at the black market on Monday , September 28, 2026, was N1,375 and N1,382 per dollar for buying and selling rates, respectively.

The Federal Government has launched the Nigeria Health Financing Observatory to improve accountability in health spending by tracking how funds are allocated, released, and spent, while linking financing to health outcomes.

The Director-General of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr Kelechi Ohiri, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at the second day of the inaugural Nigeria Health Finance Research and Learning Forum, themed, ‘Evidence and Learning for Nigeria’s Health Financing Future: Building a Locally Led Research and Learning Ecosystem.’

Ohiri said the observatory was developed to address persistent challenges of fragmented health financing data and provide reliable evidence for policy and decision-making at both national and subnational levels.

He said the country could no longer afford to continue relying on the status quo in health financing decisions, noting that poor data should not remain an excuse for inaction.

‘Can we really afford the status quo? I think it’s way too expensive,’ Ohiri said.

Reflecting on previous efforts to use evidence to measure health outcomes, he recalled the challenges encountered during the implementation of the Saving One Million Lives Initiative, when government struggled to obtain timely and reliable data.

He said that while Nigeria’s data environment had improved significantly through better technology and increased availability of information, the challenge of translating data into useful evidence remained.

‘A common theme, really, about today and yesterday is about narratives and telling stories. And how can we use the data we have and translate that into evidence? How can we translate that evidence into insight, and how can all the insight we pull together create a credible and accurate narrative about who we are and where we are as a country?’ he asked.

Ohiri said Nigeria had increased healthcare financing over the years but still spent less than comparable countries in terms of health expenditure per capita and as a percentage of GDP.

He stressed that beyond increasing resources, government must be able to determine whether available funds were being spent appropriately.

‘Even tracking to know are we spending it right? Is it channelled to the right things? And we have different data sources. There’s a health account. There are public expenditure tracking surveys. There are multiple data sources, extremely fragmented, and so it’s almost starvation of evidence in the midst of plenty data,’ he said.

According to him, the observatory would bring together fragmented information and transform it into evidence that could generate insights for policymakers, researchers and other stakeholders.

He said the platform would provide dashboards, comparative analytics and an evidence repository to document research findings and lessons on health financing.

Ohiri said the observatory would also address the challenge of insufficient subnational data, which had limited the ability of policymakers to understand health financing across Nigeria’s federal structure.

‘The notion of the observatory is to again do something about the bad quality of data we have, do something about the fragmentation of data, do something about the fact that the data is always very high level in global observatories,’ he said.

He explained that health financing in Nigeria involved several layers of government and development partners, making it difficult to determine the exact flow of resources to individual facilities and programmes.

‘The average primary healthcare centre in Nigeria is partly funded by a development partner, the local government, the state government, and the federal government at the same time,’ he said.

Ohiri added that the observatory would provide greater visibility into intergovernmental fiscal transfers and the contributions of different levels of government to healthcare financing.

He described the observatory as a public good that would make information available to researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders.

‘This observatory is a public good, meaning that the TWG intends to make this data available to people, to researchers, to anyone who wants it,’ he said.

He also invited civil society organisations to use the information on the platform to promote accountability.

‘I would always welcome civil society that holds us accountable based on evidence rather than based on perceptions,’ Ohiri said.

He said federal and state institutions would be expected to contribute reliable and current financial, budget and expenditure information, while researchers and academics would contribute their findings and analytical expertise.

Ohiri said the ultimate measure of the observatory’s success would not be the sophistication of its dashboards but its impact on policy decisions and healthcare delivery.

‘The success of this observatory will be measured not just by how beautiful the dashboards will be. They are nice, by the way, but will be measured by the policy decisions it enhances and improves its utilisation,’ he said.

He added that the platform should contribute to ‘better care, better financial protection, better budgeting, better planning in the health sector.’

Speaking on the rationale behind the platform, Dr Yewande Ogundeji of the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research said the observatory would strengthen Nigerian ownership of health financing information and enable policymakers to make decisions using locally generated evidence.

She said the platform would bring together data from Nigerian and international sources and make it accessible to researchers and policymakers.

‘No ownership without control for health financing. This means being able to set our own priorities, understand the resources that are available to us, and use our own evidence to guide our decisions,’ Ogundeji said.

She said the observatory would support Nigeria’s financing transition by tracking domestic and external financing, budgets and releases at national and subnational levels.

Ogundeji said the platform would also help researchers overcome difficulties associated with accessing health financing data.

She disclosed that almost 200 indicators had been identified for the observatory, with the platform being rolled out in phases.

‘For this particular observatory, we have almost 200 indicators that have been identified as important and necessary for the observatory to be functional,’ she said.

According to her, the first phase has about 50 validated indicators, while subsequent phases would introduce additional indicators and test artificial intelligence-assisted search and predictive analysis.

‘We don’t want it to be a static observatory. We want to be able to somewhat test as we go along, receive feedback, evolve it if necessary,’ she said.

Ogundeji said the platform would ultimately provide health financing and health outcome data in one place, enabling users to examine how financing decisions affect health outcomes.

‘It’s about being able to have that harmonised on one platform,’ she said.

Presenting the technical features of the observatory, Samuel Atanda, who led the team that developed the platform, said it was designed to provide unrestricted public access to verified health financing information while supporting research and accountability.

He said the platform would allow users to compare indicators across states and regions, track trends and identify gaps in health financing.

Atanda said one of the key features was the ability of researchers to submit research and data to the platform, which could then be reviewed and used to generate further research questions.

‘What that does is that it raises some questions. We begin to create relationships between health outcomes, health financing data, establish new questions that may have not been asked before, give birth to further research subject or topic areas that needs to be deeply looked into,’ he said.

He said the observatory would also provide an indicator catalogue explaining how each indicator was defined and, for derived indicators, the formula used to calculate it.

Atanda said the platform would draw data from about 10 sources, including the NHIA, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, National Population Commission, Budget Office, Central Bank of Nigeria and WHO, among others.

He said the system had been designed to provide transparency on the sources and methodology behind the data.

‘So that by the time you go into the platform, you see exactly where we got the data from. If it is a derived indicator, how we derived it, and how you can either use that in your research to arrive at the same figure,’ he said.

Atanda said the observatory could also be used by state governments to assess their performance against the Abuja health financing target, while legislators and civil society organisations could use it to scrutinise budget allocations and expenditure.

He said the platform would also enable users to compare health budgets, execution, insurance enrolment and health outcomes.

According to him, the observatory currently contains indicators covering budgets and allocations, health spending, government health expenditure, household financial burden, health coverage and outcomes.

He said data would pass through validation processes before publication, including automated checks for anomalies and review by the technical working group.

Responding to concerns about cybersecurity, data protection and reliability, Atanda said the platform had been developed in compliance with Nigeria’s data protection requirements.

‘We are NDPA certified,’ he said.

He added that the platform’s architecture was selected after considering data sovereignty, reliability, sustainability and future integration.

Also speaking, the Executive Director of the WHO Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research, Dr Kumanan Rasamathan, said the observatory could strengthen Nigeria’s health sovereignty by enabling the country to clearly track where health resources came from, where they went, and what they achieved.

He said countries could not make effective health financing decisions without knowing how money was flowing through their health systems.

‘How do you make decisions about your policies if you don’t know where the money is flowing? You don’t know what you’re getting for the money,’ he said.

Rasamathan compared the observatory to an astronomical observatory, saying it would help policymakers bring together fragmented data points and identify patterns that might otherwise remain hidden.

He cautioned, however, that the value of the platform would depend on the quality of the data feeding into it.

‘You could, however fancy your dashboards are, there are a lot of dashboards in the world, but their value is only in the quality of the data informing those dashboards,’ he said.

Rasamathan said the initiative was consistent with a World Health Assembly resolution urging countries to improve tracking of health financing data to inform policy.

He stressed that the observatory should remain Nigerian-led, with international partners supporting the country’s priorities rather than determining them.

‘This is not a WHO initiative. This is not a World Bank initiative. This is an initiative from Nigeria. That is sovereignty,’ he said.

He said the platform could eventually support broader health-system performance monitoring, analysis, knowledge brokering and advocacy.

Rasamathan urged stakeholders to ensure that the observatory produced timely data that could support current policy decisions, rather than relying on information several years old.

He said the ability to provide timely and accessible financial data would be important for advancing universal health coverage and strengthening Nigeria’s health system.

‘It’s a necessary condition for progress, for universal health coverage, and for health sovereignty,’ he said.

The Kaduna Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, when completed, is expected to create between 10,000 and 20,000 jobs, thereby providing employment to teeming jobless youths.

The Acting Director-General of the Kaduna State Transport Regulatory Authority (KASTRA), Alhaji Inuwa Ibrahim, disclosed this while speaking with journalists on the proposed BRT project in Kaduna on Monday.

Ibrahim said the project, which will cover a 24-kilometre corridor, will provide residents with a more efficient and affordable means of transportation.

The Acting DG noted that the project, which is expected to commence in the first quarter of 2027, is the first BRT system in Northern Nigeria and the second of its kind in Nigeria after Lagos, when completed.

According to him, the project will deploy about 120 articulated buses, alongside dedicated lanes, bus shelters and other supporting infrastructure.

He said the project would generate significant employment opportunities across its operations, including for drivers, mechanics, maintenance workers and other personnel.

‘We are expecting to have about 10 to 20,000 jobs for this BRT corridor of just 24 kilometres,’ he said.

He noted that the dedicated BRT lanes would allow buses to operate with minimal disruption from traffic congestion, thereby improving the reliability and efficiency of public transportation in the state.

The KASTRA Acting Director-General explained that the buses would operate on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), which he said was cheaper to operate and cleaner than conventional fuel.

He added that the use of CNG would also help reduce environmental pollution and contribute to a cleaner environment in Kaduna State.

‘We are using CNG all through, which is cheaper and cleaner. Even our environment will be cleaner than it used to be when we start the operation of the BRT system,’ he said.

Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has challenged the African Democratic Congress (ADC) governorship candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, to go beyond learning Yoruba and demonstrate a deeper understanding of Lagos and its governance challenges.

The party said while learning the language was commendable, proficiency in Yoruba alone could not substitute for an understanding of the history, culture, institutions and socio-economic realities of the state.

APC spokesperson, Mogaji Seye Oladejo, stated this in reaction to Rhodes-Vivour’s recent appearance on Politics Today on Arise TV, where the ADC candidate disclosed that he had engaged a Yoruba language teacher and planned to campaign in the language.

Oladejo said the development was welcome but raised questions about the extent to which the opposition candidate understood the people and environment he aspired to govern.

He said: ‘There is nothing wrong with learning the language of the people one seeks to govern. Indeed, it is commendable.

‘But it does raise one rather obvious and curious question: If a man aspiring to govern Lagos is only now taking lessons in the language, how deeply has he engaged with the culture, worldview, history, traditions and everyday aspirations of the people he seeks to lead?’

The APC spokesman, however, cautioned against viewing the issue from an ethnic perspective, noting that Lagos was a cosmopolitan state inhabited by people from different parts of Nigeria.

According to him, language could serve as a gateway to understanding a people because it carries elements of history, values, traditions and ways of seeing the world.

He consequently urged Rhodes-Vivour to complement his Yoruba lessons with what he described as ‘Understanding Lagos 101’ and ‘Thinking in Yoruba’.

Oladejo also defended the experience of the APC governorship candidate, Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, against what he described as Rhodes-Vivour’s attempts to dismiss his record.

Hamzat, the incumbent deputy governor, has held several positions in the Lagos State Government, including that of commissioner, before becoming deputy governor.

Oladejo said while Rhodes-Vivour had the right to criticise Hamzat’s record, such criticism could not erase the experience accumulated by the APC candidate through years of public service.

He said the ADC candidate could identify areas where he believed the government had fallen short, but added that ‘criticism does not erase experience.’

According to him, Lagos required a serious debate on governance rather than the reduction of complex issues to political sound bites.

On traffic, Oladejo said Rhodes-Vivour’s criticism of the state’s transportation challenges should be accompanied by details of the alternative he intended to provide.

He challenged the ADC candidate to explain how he would tackle traffic congestion, including his plans for roads, financing, mass transit, implementation, timelines and measurable targets.

‘Lagos is not a village road network. It is one of Africa’s largest urban and economic centres, with enormous population pressure, intense commercial activity and rapidly expanding transportation demands,’ he said.

Oladejo said the issue should therefore not merely be whether traffic existed in Lagos, but what practical alternative each candidate seeking to govern the state was proposing.

He further criticised what he described as the tendency to present Lagos’ governance challenges as issues that could be solved through campaign slogans or television appearances.

‘Lagos is not governed by Instagram posts, television appearances or campaign slogans,’ he said.

‘Lagos is governed through institutions, budgets, planning, infrastructure, security coordination, transportation systems, economic policy and thousands of daily administrative decisions.’

The APC spokesman urged Rhodes-Vivour to allow Lagos voters to scrutinise his own programme, experience and capacity rather than focusing primarily on defining his opponent.

Oladejo said the 2027 governorship contest should centre on competing programmes and the capacity of candidates to translate campaign promises into public policy.

‘2027 is not an audition for television. It is a conversation about the future of Lagos,’ he said.

‘And Lagosians deserve to know not merely who can criticise Lagos, but who understands Lagos-and who can govern it.’

The Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Limited), on Tuesday, following its Annual General Meeting and second Earnings Call with financial and business analysts, announced its audited results for the year ended December 31, 2025.

The results underlined the company’s growing earnings capacity and operational momentum, providing a stronger platform for growth.

According to a statement signed by the Chief Corporate Communications Officer (CCCO), Andy Odeh, Profit After Tax (PAT) rose 33% to ?7.2 trillion from ?5.4 trillion in 2024, while revenue stood at ?34.5 trillion.

Revenue declined by 24%, principally reflecting lower crude oil prices and reduced white product volumes following market deregulation in 2024. Stronger earnings despite this pressure demonstrate the resilience of NNPC Limited’s operations.

Key financial measures, however, advanced, as EBITDA rose 22% to ?18.0 trillion; Earnings Per Share increased 32% to ?35.9; operating cash flow grew 16% to ?12.8 trillion; Return on Equity improved by 200 basis points to 16%; and the declared dividend increased by 35% to ?5.8 trillion.

In operational highlights, crude oil and condensate production averaged 1.77 million barrels per day, its highest level in five years, while natural gas output averaged 7.2 billion standard cubic feet per day, a three-year high.

Oil and condensate production totalled 565.8 million barrels, up 5%, with NNPC Limited’s equity share increasing by 11% to 223.7 million barrels. Natural gas production reached 2,606.2 billion standard cubic feet, up 9%, while its equity share rose by 11% to 1,154.9 billion standard cubic feet.

Progress across the portfolio included the completion of the AKK River Niger crossing and full completion of the 40-inch by 623-kilometre Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano mainline.

NNPC Limited commissioned the ANOH-OB3 Custody Transfer Metering Station and advanced the 300MMscfd ANOH Gas Processing Plant to start-up readiness. It also acquired 500 CNG-powered trucks and adopted a Technical Equity Partnership Model for its refinery reform.

NNPC Limited enters the next phase of growth with clear production and investment ambitions. It is targeting crude oil production of 2 million barrels per day by 2027 and 3 million barrels per day by 2030, alongside natural gas output of 12 billion standard cubic feet per day by 2030.

The company also revealed plans to mobilise $60 billion in upstream, midstream and downstream investments by 2030 and complete major gas infrastructure, including AKK, ELPS and OB3.

Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), NNPC Limited, Engineer Bashir Bayo Ojulari, said, ‘Our 2025 performance shows what disciplined execution and a capable workforce can deliver.

‘We are strengthening earnings, growing production and investing in the people and assets that will sustain value for our shareholders, communities and the Nigerian people.’

On sustainability, the company completed 6,028 cataract surgeries, planted 80,000 trees, developed its Net Zero 2050 strategy and maintained reporting under the Oil and Gas Methane Partnership (OGMP), Oil and Gas Decarbonization Charter (OGDC) and United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) frameworks.

As Nigeria marks 66 years of independence and enters her 67th year as a sovereign nation, October 1 should be more than another occasion for flags, speeches and celebration. It should be a moment of sober national reflection.

At 66, we should be asking difficult questions: Where did we begin? How far have we travelled? What went wrong along the way? And, most importantly, how do we build a country capable of fulfilling the hopes of its founding generation and the aspirations of those coming after us?

At independence in 1960, Nigeria inherited a regional constitutional system in which the regions carried considerable responsibility for economic development. The economy was productive and largely agricultural. Cocoa powered the Western Region; groundnuts and cotton were major products of the North; palm produce sustained the East, while rubber, timber and other commodities generated employment, public revenue and foreign exchange. The regions competed in education, infrastructure, agriculture and industry.

That promising trajectory was disrupted by political crises, military intervention, civil war and prolonged military rule. Then came the rise of petroleum as the dominant source of government revenue and foreign exchange. As oil earnings expanded, agriculture and other productive sectors gradually lost their central place, and Nigeria drifted from a production-oriented economy towards one heavily dependent on oil revenues and imported goods. The consequences remain with us.

The return to democratic rule in 1999 opened another chapter. Successive administrations recorded achievements in telecommunications, banking, infrastructure and agriculture. Yet policy inconsistency, unreliable electricity, weak productive capacity, import dependence, costly subsidies and inadequate public revenue continued to constrain the country’s potential.

It was against this background that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office on May 29, 2023.

The courage and cost of reform

One economic truth is difficult to escape: no country can indefinitely consume what it does not produce, borrow continuously to finance consumption, or sustain subsidies beyond its means. Eventually, hard choices become unavoidable.

Since 2023, the Federal Government has pursued major reforms in petroleum pricing, foreign exchange, taxation, electricity regulation and the encouragement of domestic refining and private investment. These changes have no doubt imposed severe costs. Inflation and the erosion of purchasing power have placed noticeable pressure on families, workers, pensioners and businesses. Food, transport, housing and energy costs remain painful realities.

The reforms have also imposed substantial short-term costs. Inflation and the erosion of purchasing power have placed considerable pressure on households, workers, pensioners and businesses. And the question often asked, when will the benefits of these reforms become visible in the pockets of the masses, cannot but be said to be legitimate.

That question must not be dismissed. It is being answered each day by government functionaries. Beyond answers however, macroeconomic recovery does not automatically or immediately translate into household prosperity. Stabilisation must attract investment; investment must expand production; production must create jobs and increase supply; and rising productivity must eventually improve incomes and moderate prices.

The World Bank’s April 2026 Nigeria Development Update captures this tension well. It reported meaningful progress in restoring macroeconomic stability while also observing that household incomes had yet to recover fully and poverty remained high. That is precisely the challenge Nigeria faces today: stabilisation may be taking root, but the gains must move from government balance sheets and financial markets to the dining tables of Nigerian families.

From confidence to production

Macroeconomic stability matters because investment thrives on predictability. When exchange rates are volatile, public finances are uncertain and policies change abruptly, investors either stay away or demand a high premium for risk. Greater policy clarity can help attract patient capital.

But renewed investor interest must be converted into the real economy: factories, agro-processing plants, mines and mineral-processing facilities, electricity projects, petrochemical and pharmaceutical industries, technology companies, transport and logistics networks, and infrastructure that allows micro, small and medium enterprises to flourish.

Portfolio investment has its place, but productive investment has a deeper developmental impact when it creates jobs, transfers technology and expands domestic capacity. The success of reform should therefore not be measured only by the naira, foreign reserves or the stock market. It should be measured by production, jobs, lower inflation and rising real incomes.

Nigeria cannot prosper permanently as an exporter of raw materials and an importer of finished goods. We must return to production; not to the hoes and cutlasses of the 1960s, but to mechanised, technology-driven agriculture linked to processing, storage, transportation and export markets.

Our cocoa should feed Nigerian confectionery industries. Cassava should support starch, pharmaceutical and industrial production. Tomatoes should supply processing factories. Cotton should feed textile mills. Our gas resources should power industries and fertiliser plants. The national ambition must shift from exporting commodities to exporting value-added Nigerian products.

Power, tax and human capital

No modern economy can industrialise without reliable electricity. The Electricity Act 2023 created a more decentralised framework by empowering states to establish and regulate intrastate electricity markets. The promise is significant, but the real test is practical: more power to homes and factories, lower production costs and businesses that can compete without relying endlessly on generators.

Tax reform is equally important. Nigeria needs revenue to fund roads, healthcare, education and security, but taxation must be fair, as being currently pursued, efficient and supportive of enterprise. Simplifying administration and reducing overlapping taxes can improve the business environment. Yet higher revenue must go hand in hand with transparency, accountability and prudent use of public resources. Citizens should be able to see a relationship between what they pay and the quality of services they receive.

Nigeria’s greatest resource, however, is its people. The Nigerian Education Loan Fund is an important attempt to widen access to higher education, but access alone is not enough. Education itself must be reoriented towards productivity.

Technical and vocational education, STEM, artificial intelligence, robotics, programming, data science, renewable energy, modern agriculture and fabrication should no longer sit at the margins of national planning. A youthful population without skills and opportunity can become a source of social strain; properly educated and empowered, it can become Nigeria’s greatest competitive advantage.

Energy and infrastructure as multipliers

For decades, it was an economic contradiction that a major crude-oil producer depended heavily on imported refined petroleum products. Expanding domestic refining offers an opportunity to reverse that pattern. But Nigeria’s ambition must extend beyond petrol and diesel to petrochemicals, fertilisers, plastics, pharmaceuticals, industrial chemicals and gas-based manufacturing.

The objective should be simple: retain more value at home, conserve foreign exchange and create productive jobs.

Infrastructure is just as critical. A good road connects a farmer to a market; a railway reduces transport costs; an efficient port improves export competitiveness; reliable electricity powers factories; and broadband connects entrepreneurs to the global economy.

Major highway, rail, port and aviation projects should therefore be judged not merely by kilometres built or the size of their budgets, but by whether they reduce logistics costs, stimulate commerce, expand production and improve the competitiveness of Nigerian businesses.

From statistics to household prosperity

Nigerians do not live on macroeconomic statistics. They experience the economy through the price of food, transportation, housing, electricity, school fees and healthcare. The next phase of reform must therefore connect stabilisation with household prosperity.

The farmer, market woman, civil servant, pensioner and unemployed graduate must feel it. So must the manufacturer and small-business owner.

That requires a determined assault on food inflation, insecurity, transportation and energy costs, alongside higher agricultural productivity, stronger social protection and greater support for micro, small and medium enterprises.

Economic growth becomes meaningful when it raises real incomes, reduces poverty and gives citizens a reasonable expectation that tomorrow can be better than today.

The Nigeria we must build

Economic reconstruction alone will not be enough. Nigeria must strengthen institutions and the rule of law, deepen federalism, empower states and local governments as genuine centres of development, rebuild agriculture, expand electricity, improve security and educate children for productivity rather than certificates alone.

We must also reconstruct our national values. Integrity, discipline, patriotism, hard work, tolerance, accountability and respect for the dignity of labour must return to the centre of public life. Government has enormous responsibilities, but nation-building cannot be outsourced to government alone.

As 2027 approaches, Nigerians will again assess the country’s direction. The proper test should be concrete and measurable: Are reforms producing more jobs? Is inflation easing? Are real incomes recovering? Is electricity improving? Are businesses investing? Is poverty declining?

Policy continuity matters where policies are working, but continuity must never become a substitute for accountability. Reforms deserve to endure when they deliver measurable results for citizens.

At 66, Nigeria is no longer a young nation. We have survived civil war, military rule, recessions, democratic transitions and repeated economic experiments. Our challenges are formidable, but so are our advantages: abundant natural resources, a vast domestic market, an entrepreneurial population, a strategic location and a large youthful population.

What we require now is the discipline to convert those advantages into broad-based prosperity.

As we raise our flag on October 1, let us renew our covenant with Nigeria. Let us build a country that produces rather than merely consumes; exports value rather than raw materials; innovates rather than imitates; and creates opportunities rather than exporting its brightest young people.

Let us build a Nigeria where the circumstances of birth do not determine the limits of ambition, where diversity is a strength, where public office is a call to service, and where every citizen can realistically aspire to a better tomorrow.

The reconstruction of Nigeria is possible, but it will not happen by proclamation. It will require consistent policy, competent institutions, accountable leadership, productive citizens and a shared commitment to the long work of nation-building.

The House of Representatives has extended the implementation period of the capital component of the 2025 Appropriation Act for the fourth time, moving the deadline from September 30, 2026, to December 31, 2026.

The decision was taken on Tuesday after the House resumed plenary from its annual recess and considered and passed an Executive bill seeking to amend the Appropriation (Repeal and Enactment) Act, 2025.

Leading the debate, the Majority Leader, Julius Ihonvbere, said the extension was necessary because of factors affecting the Nigerian economy that had made it difficult to complete the implementation of the capital component within the previously approved timeframe.

He urged lawmakers to support the amendment to ensure that the expiration of the existing deadline would not prevent the completion of projects and other capital commitments under the 2025 budget.

The latest extension means that the capital component of the 2025 budget, which was originally due to expire at the end of 2025, will now remain operational until December 31, 2026.

This is the fourth time the implementation period has been extended since December 2025, when lawmakers first approved an extension to March 31, 2026.

First extension: December 2025 to March 2026

The first extension came in December 2025, when the National Assembly approved a revised 2025 Appropriation Act and extended the implementation period of its capital component to March 31, 2026.

The House of Representatives approved the extension on December 23, 2025, following President Bola Tinubu’s request to allow the government to release and utilise capital allocations to Ministries, Departments and Agencies before the end of the revised implementation period.

Second extension: March to June 2026

As the March 31 deadline approached, lawmakers approved another extension of the capital budget’s implementation period, moving it to June 30, 2026.

The National Assembly approved the extension on March 31 after considering legislation seeking to amend the 2025 Appropriation Act. The House said the additional period was needed to allow Ministries, Departments and Agencies to continue implementing capital projects and utilise funds allocated to them.

Third extension: June to September 2026

The third extension was approved in June after lawmakers concluded that the capital component of the 2025 budget had still not been fully implemented.

The House of Representatives passed the amendment on June 15, extending the deadline from June 30 to September 30, 2026. The bill passed through first, second and third readings in a single sitting after lawmakers suspended relevant provisions of their Standing Orders.

During the debate, lawmakers said the additional three months would give the government more time to complete ongoing projects captured in the 2025 budget. Speaker Tajudeen Abbas also said records available to the House showed that the capital budget had not been fully implemented.

Fourth extension: September to December 2026

The latest extension came after the House resumed from its annual recess on Tuesday, with lawmakers again approving an amendment to the 2025 Appropriation Act.

The House of Representatives moved the implementation deadline from September 30 to December 31, 2026, giving federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies another three months to implement capital projects and utilise funds appropriated under the 2025 budget.

Ihonvbere, while leading the debate, attributed the latest extension to ‘several factors and forces impinging on the Nigerian economy’, saying these had made it difficult to conclude implementation before the existing deadline.

The House subsequently passed the bill after consideration at the Committee of Supply, chaired by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu.

Following consideration of the appropriation legislation, the House of Representatives adjourned plenary until Tuesday, October 13, 2026.