Tinubu’s Tough Reforms Paying Off As Reserves Hit $46bn, Nigeria Exits FATF Grey List – Information Minister
After months of economic pain that tested public patience, the Federal Government says Nigeria is finally seeing early gains from hard reforms taken to avert fiscal collapse.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic reforms are stabilising the economy, restoring investor confidence and placing the country on a sustainable growth path.
He spoke during a virtual interview on ICAN On Air, the live programme of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria.
Idris said the early removal of fuel subsidy and unification of the foreign exchange rate were deliberate moves to fix deep structural flaws that had pushed Nigeria to the brink.
As of May 2023, he noted, 26 of 36 states struggled to pay salaries, while about 97 per cent of national revenue went into servicing debt.
While acknowledging short-term shocks from the reforms, the Minister said they were necessary to correct long-standing distortions that favoured a few beneficiaries over the wider population.
He cited improving indicators, including foreign reserves of about $46 billion, the highest in eight years, easing inflation, and growing confidence from investors and international partners.
Idris also described Nigeria’s removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list as a major credibility boost, improving access to global capital and strengthening the country’s standing in the international financial system.
On tax reforms, he clarified that the goal is not to increase citizens’ tax burden but to simplify the system, eliminate duplication and fairly bring more people into the tax net to support better development planning.
The Minister stressed that rebuilding trust is central to governance, noting that President Tinubu regularly seeks feedback on policies and adjusts implementation where necessary, while remaining firm on essential long-term reforms.
He added that the government is strengthening inter-agency collaboration and media literacy to curb misinformation without undermining press freedom.
Idris further revealed that Nigeria has won the bid to host UNESCO’s first Category-2 Media and Information Literacy Institute to equip citizens, especially young people, with skills to distinguish facts from falsehoods.
He urged Nigerians to remain patient and engaged, assuring that the benefits of the reforms will increasingly reflect in infrastructure, education, healthcare and sub-national development.
Follow the Savinews Africa channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VawgaEL5vKA9Y5XTFg0n
