A Bird’s Eye View Of A Fraction of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Accomplishments In His First 23 Months In Office – The World Is Watching To see If Nigeria Flinches.

A Bird’s Eye View Of A Fraction of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Accomplishments In His First 23 Months In Office – The World Is Watching To see If Nigeria Flinches.

By Dr. Bunmi Awoyemi

When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took office, Nigeria’s economy was on the brink. Nearly all national revenue—98%—was going toward debt servicing, leaving the country in a loop of borrowing just to stay afloat.

President Tinubu responded with a bold economic reset:

• Fuel subsidy was fully removed.

• Electricity subsidy was partially removed for Band A customers—those with access to 20 to 24 hours of daily power supply.

• Forex controls were lifted, letting market forces determine the exchange rate for the naira against the dollar, pound, and euro.

I am of the opinion that this “triple shock therapy” primarily and initially pushed inflation to nearly 40% from 25%, but the effects are being managed. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, inflation had dropped to 23.4% by early 2025. However, there is a school of thought championed by the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun and former CBN Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi that the inflation the country experienced from the time President Buhari was in power and which continued into the Tinubu administration was caused by CBN’s ways and means lending to the Federal Government which made it print an unprecedented N22 trillion. This put way too much cash in circulation. Too much cash was chasing the goods and services in the economy and this made the cash in circulation less valuable.

The removal of the fuel subsidy did save 19 out of Nigeria’s 36 states from bankruptcy or imminent financial collapse as they could not pay their domestic debts to their local bank creditors – could not pay salaries of civil servants and pensions of pensioners in their states - in addition to owing their infrastructure contractors trillions of naira which had culminated in abandoned infrastructural projects across those 19 states. State Governors have significantly reduced their external and domestic borrowing since the elimination of fuel subsidy. State Governors are now receiving significantly more money than they used to receive as federal allocations. For instance, Governor Hope Uzodima of Imo state recently confirmed this when he said: "Before Tinubu in 2020, Imo State allocation was N5 billion. Today, under Tinubu, it is between N12 billion and N13 billion Naira. We no longer borrow to pay salaries and execute projects. The reason is that Tinubu has blocked all the leakages caused by subsidy payments."

Education Reforms: Student Loan Milestone

In a groundbreaking move at the federal level, the Nigeria Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) launched a wide-scale student loan initiative. As of April 4, 2025:

• 543,768 students had registered.

• 470,829 had applied for loans.

• Over ₦50 billion was requested for tuition and fees.

• Almost ₦106 billion was requested for student upkeep.

• A total of ₦49.3 billion had been disbursed following verification.

This eases financial pressure on Nigerian families, helping students cover both tuition and living expenses.

Infrastructure: Upgrades to Unity Schools

According to This Day (April 11, 2025), the Federal Government approved ₦80 billion for Unity School upgrades:

• ₦40 billion for rehabilitation,

• ₦20 billion for security (fencing and access control),

• ₦20 billion for solar energy installations.

The goal: safer, better-equipped unity schools with reliable power, creating a secure and more comfortable environment for both students and teachers.

New Telegraph of April 30th, 2025, reported that President Tinubu has approved a N110 Billion investment in 18 University Medical Schools. The Federal Government, through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), announced a N110 billion investment to upgrade medical schools in 18 Nigerian universities. The initiative targets four key programs—medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, and nursing—and aims to strengthen healthcare education nationwide. Each university will receive about N4 billion, including N750 million for hostel construction. Minister of State for Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, made the announcement during the inauguration of a ministerial committee on the project in Abuja.

Premium Times of same date equally confirmed the beneficiary institutions to include the University of Jos, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, University of Benin, Imo State University, University of Medical Sciences, Ondo State, and Umaru Musa Yar’Adua University, Katsina. Others are the University of Calabar, Benue State University, University of Maiduguri, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi, Gombe State University, University of Nigeria, and Bayelsa State University. Also in the list are the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Usman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, University of Ibadan and University of Lagos.

The move is part of the Tinubu administration’s broader plan to improve health education, reduce reliance on foreign-trained medical professionals and significantly increase the capacity of the medical schools to admit more students into their medical degree programs so that the number of medical doctors being currently produced – around 5,000 per annum can significantly increase because the decades-long brain drain in the medical field is causing acute shortage of medical doctors in Nigeria.

For years, Nigeria has been a nation of squandered potential — rich in people, poor in leadership. But under President Bola Tinubu, the narrative is beginning to shift. In less than two years, his administration is rolling out reforms and initiatives that signal not just intent, but impact.

Let’s start with something as basic — and as life-saving — as healthcare.

Health Sector: Massive Expansion in Access

Vanguard reported (April 5, 2025) that President Tinubu approved:

• The creation of 8,800 new Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs), and

• The upgrade of tertiary health institutions to handle trauma, oncology, and infectious disease control.

This equates to roughly 11 new PHCs per local government area, a bottom-up strategy designed to radically improve public health outcomes. The expected benefits include:

• Reduced infant and maternal mortality,

• Better prenatal care and child immunization,

• Enhanced emergency response and healthcare access,

• Increased life expectancy across the population.

In a country with one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, Tinubu’s decision to make Cesarean sections free for women in need is a bold, humane policy. Alongside this, an 80% subsidy on dialysis slashes the cost to ₦12,000 per session, bringing relief to thousands of families struggling with chronic kidney issues. This isn’t policy for headlines — it’s policy that saves lives.

But the government isn’t stopping at health. Nigeria’s economy, long shackled by oil dependency and mismanagement, is finally being steered in a more productive direction. With over ₦9.1 trillion in revenue generated in just the first half of 2024 — more than double the amount from the same period in 2023. Nairametrics recently reported that in Quarter 1 of 2025, the Nigeria Customs alone generated N1.75 trillion, surpassing the target the Tinubu administration set by N106.5 billion.

Tinubu’s economic team is putting that growth to use. Social investment is no longer theoretical. ₦75 billion has been set aside for MSMEs, supporting small businesses that form the backbone of the economy. Over 827,000 SMEs were empowered in 2024 alone. These aren’t random handouts; they’re targeted moves to stimulate job creation and reduce poverty. According to Finance Minister Wale Edun, 60% of Nigeria’s poorest — some 20 million people — are in the sights of the government’s social programmes. That’s scale Nigeria has never seen before.

The Federal Government has unveiled a relaunch of the sweeping Home Grown School feeding Programme aimed at combating child hunger, boosting school enrolment, and improving academic outcomes across the country. Announced at a time when projections warn that over 30 million Nigerians may face hunger in the coming months, the initiative promises not just relief but a crucial investment in the nation’s future. The program is scheduled for restart on May 29th, 2025. Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Dr Yusuf Sununu, a key coordinator of the program outlined a clear, ambitious goal:

“The initiative aims to benefit 10 million children and could increase school enrolment by 20 percent and academic performance by 15 percent," he said.

"Our mission is simple but critical — to feed every public school pupil from Primary One to Three, nurturing their potential and building the nation’s future.”

Tinubu had already allocated N100 billion for the national home grown school feeding program in the 2025 budget. The programme is about more than filling empty stomachs. It is about creating a cycle of opportunity—where better nutrition leads to better attendance, which leads to better academic performance, which in turn fuels broader societal progress.

Crucially, the programme will NOT rely on imported food but will source ingredients, condiments and crops, locally, creating direct economic benefits for Nigerian farmers, food processors, and vendors. This design ensures that while children are being fed, the broader rural economy is also being energized.

By connecting local agricultural producers or farmers directly to the programme, the government aims to inject fresh momentum into rural economies, stimulate job creation, and strengthen food supply chains battered by years of insecurity, inflation, and underinvestment.

Experts have long noted that well-run school feeding programmes produce ripple effects beyond education. They improve child health, lower dropout rates, foster gender equity (by keeping more girls in school), and even contribute to peacebuilding in conflict-prone areas by giving communities a shared stake in stability. For the programme to succeed on a national scale, it will require strict transparency, effective monitoring, and tight coordination between federal, state, and local authorities. Leakages, mismanagement, brazen corruption and logistical failures have marred similar initiatives in the past. The difference this time must be clear: a commitment to delivery, efficiency, and accountability at every level.

There is also the issue of sustainability. Feeding 10 million children daily is no small task. It demands consistent funding, stable supply chains, and political will that endures beyond headlines and electoral cycles. The government must prioritize this programme not as a charity project but as a national investment with economic, social, and moral returns.

Meanwhile, Tinubu is tackling one of Nigeria’s most painful failures: housing. With the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) launching a ₦150 billion Real Estate Investment Fund, Nigerians now have access to 25-year mortgage plans — a game-changer in a country where most people have never had access to long-term home financing. This move can help turn generations of renters into homeowners, spurring construction, jobs, and dignity.

Infrastructure, too, is getting long-overdue attention. From the ₦80 billion rehabilitation of the Alau Dam in Borno State, to multiple multi-billion naira water projects in Benue, Dutse, and Abuja’s satellite towns, the Tinubu administration is putting money where its mouth is. Unlike past governments, this one seems to understand that real development starts with functional basics: clean water, roads, housing, and power.

And in the oil and gas sector — long the symbol of Nigeria’s corruption and underachievement — the numbers are staggering. Rig count has jumped from an average of 8 in 2021 to 38 in 2024, a 375% increase. That’s not luck. It’s the result of deliberate policy, investor confidence, and strategic engagement. ExxonMobil’s $10 billion investment, Shell’s $5 billion commitment, Total Energies’ $1.25 billion in gas projects — these are votes of confidence from global giants. This was where Mr. Ojulari, NNPCL's current GCEO drew inspiration from to unveil NNPCL’s $60bn investment drive, and its target of 3m barrels per day oil output for 2030, which the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil) in Nigeria, Heineken Lokpobiri, is even fast-forwarding to 2025 – what an ambitious target. 

For decades, Nigeria’s gas potential was a running joke in the global energy community—immense reserves, but little to show for them. Policies came and went. So did investments, confidence, and progress. Gas flaring remained the norm, rather than the exception. Infrastructure lagged. Investors stayed cautious.

That narrative has begun to change steadily and gradually —under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Business AM Live recently published a report about the latest study by the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) which revealed the economic and environmental cost associated with gas flaring energy wastage. According to NOSDRA figures, 98.8 million standard cubic feet (mscf) of natural gas was flared during the first quarter of 2025 which carried a monetary value of $345.9 million. Meanwhile, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) is highlighting the potential of the country’s Gas Flare Commercialization Programme (NGFCP) to attract notable investment into the oil and gas sector. Business AM Live said that Gbenga Komolafe, chief executive officer of NUPRC, had stated that the NGFCP has the potential to unlock approximately $2.5 billion in investment within the industry. Komolafe further elaborated on the broader benefits of the programme, stating that in addition to generating substantial revenue for the government, the NGFCP is also expected to create a significant number of much-needed jobs within the Nigerian economy. The vision of the NUPRC is to end gas flaring by 2030. To achieve that target all hands must be on deck to ensure a gradual and steady elimination of gas flaring from our upstream oil and gas sector, as the journey of a thousand miles starts with baby steps. That probably explains the urgency with which the NUPRC is tackling the menace. 

Since taking office in 2023, Tinubu has brought clarity, commitment, and execution to Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. His government has achieved what previous administrations only talked about: making natural gas the engine of Nigeria’s energy transition and industrial growth.

Reforms signed into law in 2023—through a series of bold Executive Orders—have opened the floodgates of investment. In 2024 alone, Nigeria attracted $17 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) into oil and gas. In 2025, the country is set to capture half of Africa’s projected $43 billion in oil and gas FDI. And the interest is global. According to Punch Newspaper, 74 Chinese companies have formally expressed interest in investing in Nigeria’s upstream sector, part of a broader group of 216 Chinese firms eyeing opportunities across the economy currently undergoing reforms under President Tinubu.

These results aren’t accidental. They reflect political will, strategic thinking, and a clear understanding of where Nigeria’s competitive advantage lies. With 209 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves—and up to 600 trillion in potential—Nigeria can lead Africa’s clean energy future. But leadership requires more than natural resources. It requires the kind of deliberate governance we are now seeing. President Tinubu has been called bold, even audacious. He doesn’t shy away from tough decisions. That’s exactly what this sector needed—and it’s what Nigeria needs to thrive in a rapidly changing energy world.

The message to global investors is simple: Nigeria is open for business—and this time, the doors are not just unlocked; they’re being held open.

The transformation is not just about numbers—it’s visible on the ground. The $2.8 billion Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) pipeline, now 72% complete, will stretch 614 kilometers to deliver gas to industries in Nigeria’s North. It will power up to 3.6 gigawatts of electricity, unlocking massive industrial capacity across central and northern states. It’s also tied to the construction of the 350MW Gwagwalada Independent Power Plant, a partnership with China Engineering and Machinery Corporation. These are not blueprints—they are real projects underway.

In the same vein, Leadership Newspaper recently reported that Nigeria and Morocco have agreed to unveil a joint venture to manage a long-planned $25 billion pipeline which will ship gas to Europe, a Moroccan minister has said. The pipeline project, part of an agreement signed by Morocco and Nigeria in 2017, will transport nearly 30 billion cubic metres of natural gas per year to Morocco and then to Europe. The pipeline will stretch 5,300km from Nigeria to Dhakia in Morocco and 1,700km from Dhakia to northern Morocco. The Africa Business Insider reported on April 28th 2025, that the United States has expressed interest in investing in this pipeline project which is called “Africa's most ambitious gas pipeline project.” Interest in the project was revealed during bilateral engagements at the 2025 Spring Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank Group in Washington, D.C.

What’s changed? Policy coherence. Investor trust. Regulatory support. The Nigerian Gas Association, once critical of inconsistent government policies, now praises the administration for reforms that have made gas commercially viable and investable. According to the NGA, over $5 billion in new gas-sector investments were recorded in 2024 alone—ranging from LNG facilities to gas processing plants and decentralized domestic distribution.

For the first time, gas flaring is not only discouraged—it’s being made economically unattractive. Companies are now incentivized to capture and commercialize gas. This isn’t just smart energy policy; it’s good economics and good environmental stewardship.

President Tinubu is proving what effective leadership looks like in a complex, resource-dependent economy. 

His administration inherited a sector marked by policy fatigue and investor skepticism. Less than two years later, Nigeria is being recognized by World Oil as Africa’s top destination for upstream investment, attracting over 50% of the $43b earmarked for Africa.

The global investment community has taken note. Nigeria’s $2 billion Eurobond issued in late 2024 was oversubscribed by $7 billion—evidence of restored credibility. 

Gross reserves have grown from $32 billion in 2023 to over $41 billion by Q1 2025. Net foreign exchange reserves reached their highest point in three years. By the end of 2024, Nigeria pulled off something few thought possible: a sharp turnaround in its external financial position. Net foreign exchange reserves jumped to $23.11 billion from $3.9b under President Buhari, a level not seen in three years. For a country long plagued by dollar shortages, trapped foreign capital, and investor anxiety, this isn’t just a statistic—it’s a sign that something fundamental is shifting.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it’s no accident. It’s the result of “deliberate policy choices.” And for once, that’s not spin. The naira was finally floated. Monetary policy was tightened, hard. The fuel subsidy—a political third rail—was scrapped. And FX liabilities, once a black hole sucking credibility from the system, were slashed. In total, about $7b - $10 billion in short-term obligations were paid off.

It’s easy to underestimate what this means. Foreign companies, including major international airlines that were considering pulling out due to repatriation bottlenecks, are staying put. Business confidence is rising for the third straight month in 2025, according to the NESG-Stanbic IBTC monitor. For the first time in three years, Nigeria posted a $6.83 billion balance of payments surplus even as Nigeria’s Export Promotion Council (NEPC) confirmed that Nigeria’s non-oil exports rose by 24.75% in Q1 2025 - valued at $1.79 billion.

President Bola Tinubu will finish paying off IMF's Covid period loan of $3.4b taken under Former President Buhari, by June of 2025. Nigeria is making fantastic progress in repaying its $3.4 billion loan from the IMF's Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI), which was approved in April 2020 to address the economic impact of COVID-19. Nigeria began repayments in August 2023 under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. As of March 2025, he had reportedly repaid 87.5% of the outstanding loan - A staggering sum of $2.975b, suggesting consistent adherence to the repayment schedule. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is on track to fully repay the remaining balance of $425m by June of 2025.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, Nigeria's economy under Tinubu posted a robust growth of 3.84%, its largest expansion in three years. The services sector, with an expansion of 5.37%, was the main driver of this growth. The overall annual GDP growth for 2024 stood at 3.40%, a notable improvement over the 2.74% recorded in 2023. These aren’t abstract wins—they’re the building blocks of economic stability - which is why the government initially projected an economic growth of over 4.4% for 2025, before its Finance Minister, Wale Edun, increased the projection to 7%, even though the World Bank is making its own cautious projection of 3.6% economic growth, building on the expansion of 3.4 per cent in 2024, as key macroeconomic reforms introduced by Tinubu begin to stabilize the business environment.

Of course, none of this fixes everything. Inflation is still high at over 23% year-on-year. The monetary policy rate has been hiked to 27.5%, and real sector pain is real. But the Fitch Ratings upgrade—from 'B-' to 'B', with a stable outlook—signals that the reforms are being taken seriously abroad. Credibility, once Nigeria’s rarest economic commodity, is making a comeback. Even the IMF recently confirmed that Nigeria will navigate global shocks due to Tinubu’s reforms.

And yet, this is precisely where things get dangerous. With oil prices still volatile and elections always looming somewhere on the horizon, the temptation to retreat into populist policy is strong. Another attempt to “manage” the exchange rate, or a return to deficit monetization could undo hard-won progress in months.

Nigeria has done the hard part—making the politically difficult economic choices. What remains is the even harder part: sticking to them. That means resisting short-term fixes, protecting CBN’s independence, and doubling down on structural reforms—particularly in power, oil production, and tax administration.

This is a rare window. The data says it’s working. The world is watching to see if Nigeria flinches.

By every meaningful metric, Nigeria is back on the path to real economic growth. And no matter your politics, the facts are hard to ignore: under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s leadership, the numbers are trending in the right direction—fast.

By every serious economic measure, Nigeria is changing course. Slowly but surely, the country is shaking off decades of inefficiency, rent-seeking, and policy paralysis. 

For the first time in a long time, the numbers tell a story not of survival, but of momentum. And at the center of this shift is President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reform agenda—a mix of tough decisions, bold bets, and overdue changes that are beginning to yield measurable results.

Let’s look at the banking sector—one of the most reliable indicators of a country’s economic health. According to Punch Newspaper on April 1, 2025, six of Nigeria’s top banks posted a combined net profit of ₦3.41 trillion for the 2024 fiscal year. That’s a staggering 62% increase from the ₦2.1 trillion recorded in 2023. Tier 1 institutions like Zenith Bank, UBA, and First Bank alone accounted for ₦2.41 trillion of that figure.

In any country, a 62% year-on-year net profit surge would dominate financial headlines. In Nigeria—where the banking sector has long had to operate in an unstable macroeconomic environment—it’s a seismic shift.

It is not only the banking sector that enjoyed and basked in humongous profits. Other sectors of the economy experienced massive profit taking by companies. For instance, Nairametrics recently reported Seplat Energy’s publication of its exceptional Q1, 2025 profits as its crude oil production tripled, featuring notable growth across key financial metrics, mainly driven by a more than threefold increase in pre-tax profit. Profit before tax revenue climbed by 203.97% YoY to N314.646 billion ($207 million) supported by robust revenue growth. Business AM Live reported on April 28th2025 that Seplat Energy Q1 2025 jumped to over 350% and to N1.23trn after Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU) acquisition. Premium Times equally reported recently that Lafarge Africa’s quarter one, 2025 profit surged 837%, shooting its stock price to a 52-week high. According to Nairametrics, Guinness Nigeria posted a N6.7 Billion Profit in Q1 FY25 as its revenue climbed 72%. It also reported that SCOA Nigeria declared a 149.8% surge in 2024 profit and achieved N13.5 billion revenue as auto and equipment sales thrived. According to Broadcom dot ng MTN Nigeria has bounced back to profit lane, by recording a N1 trillion Revenue In Q1 2025. The Guardian Newspaper reported recently that UNILEVER recorded a turnover of N46.9bn in Q1 2025, which represents 45% topline growth compared to N32.3bn turnover recorded in the corresponding period in 2024. Nestle Nigeria Plc on its part reported a pre-tax profit of N51.15 billion in Q1 2025.

Unsurprisingly, foreign interest is rising. On April 2nd, 2025, Punch reported that JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the world, is planning to transform its Lagos representative office into a full business branch. This isn’t a charity gesture—it’s a calculated move. JPMorgan is betting on Nigeria. In a significant enhancement to Nigeria's investment profile and international partnerships, on April 30th, 2025, the Nation reported that the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is set to establish its inaugural office in West Africa, with Lagos designated as the host city. The development was announced a day earlier during a courtesy visit to the State House, Abuja, by Ambassador Gautier Mignot, Head of the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS. Nigeria officially became the 77th shareholder of the EBRD in February 2025, following the bank's limited and incremental expansion to sub-Saharan Africa approved by its Board of Governors in 2023.

What’s driving this sudden confidence? In large part, Tinubu’s willingness to confront some of the most entrenched economic dysfunctions in the country. His removal of the fuel subsidy, for example, was a political landmine most previous presidents tiptoed around. But Tinubu took it head-on—and the fiscal results are clear. Nigeria now saves between ₦5.7 trillion and ₦7.7 trillion annually that would otherwise be poured into a black hole of fraud, smuggling, and ghost imports. Gone is the era when Nigeria subsidized petrol for neighboring countries through illegal bunkering. The country now operates a floating fuel price mechanism tied to global Platts pricing, ending decades of artificial pricing and waste.

At the same time, domestic refining is making a long-awaited comeback. The Warri and Port Harcourt refineries—dormant for over 30 years—are back online. The rehabilitation of the Kaduna Refinery in the Northwest of Nigeria is 80% complete and should roar back to life in short order. The Dangote Refinery with a capacity of 650k barrels per day and 4 other privately owned local modular refineries have also commenced operations, supported by Tinubu’s naira-for-crude exchange policy. With local production ramping up, the chronic fuel scarcity that plagued Nigeria for decades has disappeared.

The agriculture sector is undergoing a similar revolution. Under Tinubu’s reforms, Nigeria has attracted large-scale investment from global players looking to tap into its massive arable land and population. In Niger State alone, agriculture reportedly generated ₦600 billion in 2024—a figure unheard of just a few years ago.

An Indian firm has inaugurated a N10bn onion processing plant in Kano State and foreign partners are stepping up. A Chinese firm has committed over ₦1 trillion to Niger State’s agricultural development. Brazil’s JBJ is developing a 100,000-hectare cattle ranch, housing 100,000 bulls. The FAO is injecting $200 million into cocoa and oil palm projects in Cross River and Ondo states. The world’s largest protein producer from Brazil has invested $2.5 billion in Ogun State's livestock industry. Brazil has also agreed to an $8 billion agribusiness deal, and Nigeria is set to benefit from a $7.7 trillion global halal market through a new partnership with Saudi Arabia. The Tinubu administration at a meeting of the National  Economic Council (NEC), held on Thursday April 24th, 2025 at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, endorsed the establishment of a Cotton, Textile, and Garment Development Board, alongside new strategies for agribusiness expansion and livestock transformation—projects projected to generate up to $90 billion in economic value by 2035. This is not just about foreign capital. It’s about jobs, food security, and industrial value chains. For a country struggling with youth unemployment and import dependence, these moves could be game-changers.

The Tinubu administration is taking solid minerals, steel development and job creation very seriously, which explains why according to Daily Times, it has recently taken a bold step to slash Nigeria’s $4 billion annual steel import bill with the groundbreaking of a $400 million Stellar Steel Plant owned by Inner Galaxy Group in Ogun State. Success stories by companies like Inner Galaxy Group will no doubt motivate other investors to play in that sector. 

Structural reforms have matched sectoral ones. Tinubu has doubled dollar-denominated monthly federal allocations to states and introduced long-overdue local government autonomy—allowing councils to receive direct funding. He’s also established four new regional development commissions, supplementing the existing two. These aren’t just bureaucratic changes; they represent a decentralization of power and capital that’s essential for long-term growth.

Meanwhile, infrastructural development is happening at a pace not seen in Nigeria’s almost 65 years of existence as an independent nation, as 74 roads across 24 states of the federation are under construction simultaneously. For example, the N15 trillion 750km Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway—now under construction—will link key southern states and transform Nigeria’s economic geography. According to EnviroNewsNigeria, the road will have three lanes in each direction, CCTV coverage, and an accompanying rail line. The project has already reached Ondo State, and the federal government is planning a "lagoon tunnel" to connect this route to the N13 trillion 1,068km Badagry-Sokoto Highway, another major infrastructure undertaking currently underway. The 700km Abuja-Zaria -Kaduna-Kano expressway is also being reconstructed at a cost of ₦777 billion, with solar-powered street lights, CCTV, and a scheduled completion in June 2026. This isn’t politics—it’s planning. And it signals that the days of abandoned roads and endless excuses may finally be behind us.

No More Excuses: East-West Road To be Completed before 2027

After nearly two decades of missed deadlines, ballooning budgets, and bureaucratic delays, the East-West Road has become a symbol of everything wrong with Nigeria’s infrastructure delivery. But now, with ₦524 billion on the table and a clear November 30, 2025 deadline, which at worst will stretch to late 2026, there are no excuses left.

This 361km project—spanning Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom—should have transformed the South-South long ago. Instead, it’s crawled through successive administrations, trapped in red tape and poor planning. Today, only 117km remain, and the government insists that will be completed on time. We’ve heard that before.

To his credit, Tinubu’s Minister of Works David Umahi has set a clear tone: the money is there, the work must be done, and the quality must meet the standard. Section 2.1 (47km) is done and will be commissioned in May of 2025. Now the clock is ticking on the rest—especially the remaining 22km of Section 2.2.

Beyond the asphalt and concrete, this road is about lives and livelihoods. Economist Dr. Muda Yusuf projects a 10–15% drop in transport costs once the road is completed. That means cheaper food, better trade, faster movement for farmers and traders across the region.

But Nigerians have learned not to trust projections—they trust results. The difference between another broken promise and a true breakthrough lies in execution. This isn’t just a road project. It’s a credibility test. And failure is not an option for the Tinubu administration.

Rail infrastructure is also gaining ground. Goods are already being moved from Apapa Port to Oyo State via railway. Rail lines connecting all ports are under development, and many of the roads being built will include tracks. The $3b Lagos 68km Green Line—funded in part by ₦146 billion from the federal government—will connect Marina to Lekki, the Dangote Industrial Complex, and the Lekki Deep Sea Port. This kind of logistics integration is crucial for reducing the cost of goods and boosting competitiveness.

Of course, Nigeria still faces serious challenges. Inflation remains high, the naira is volatile, and insecurity in parts of the country is still a threat to investment. But what’s different now is that for the first time in years, reforms are not just being proposed—they’re being implemented. Projects are moving. Revenue is increasing. Foreign investors are not just watching—they’re entering.

Critics will point to the pain of subsidy removal and exchange rate reforms. That pain is real. But avoiding tough decisions is what got Nigeria into this hole in the first place. Tinubu’s approach is far from perfect, but it’s refreshingly unafraid.

At a time when cynicism about government is high, it’s worth recognizing when a leader takes real risks to change a broken system. Nigeria’s economy isn’t fixed yet. But it’s moving—and for now, at least, it’s moving in the right direction.

Something is shifting in Nigeria, and this time, it's not just talk—it’s capital.

In the span of just a few months, Nigeria has landed a series of major investments that point to one conclusion: confidence is returning. Visa, one of the world’s most recognizable financial technology firms, is setting up a data center in Nigeria. It’s part of a broader $1 billion African investment portfolio—but this isn’t just about corporate expansion. It’s about strategy. Visa doesn’t drop that kind of money without doing due diligence.

At the same time, Sweden is opening its largest innovation hub in Lagos. Open Access Data Centres, a subsidiary of the WIOCC Group, plans to expand its Lagos facility to 24 megawatts by 2027, investing about $240 million. That’s no small project—and it isn’t happening in a vacuum. It’s happening because Nigeria is signaling something new: reform is real, and the economic environment is finally worth betting on.

From Powerless to Power Hub

Electricity remains the backbone of any modern economy, and for decades, Nigeria’s has been brittle—fragile grids, aging transmission lines, and chronic blackouts. Under the Buhari administration, Nigeria’s grid collapsed roughly 93 times. In 2024 alone, it collapsed another 12 times. For a country vying to be Africa’s largest economy, that’s a death sentence for productivity.

But that narrative is beginning to change. The Tinubu administration has secured $950 million in funding for the Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) programme. With backing from the World Bank and the Japanese International Development Corporation (JICA), the goal is to provide clean electricity to over 17 million Nigerians. This includes mini-grids, interconnected systems, and standalone solar for rural areas. To free up grid electricity for Nigerians and to reduce the N500m per annum electricity bills of Aso Rock Villa, the Tinubu administration is currently installing solar panels and inverter systems worth N10b in all the buildings in the villa. 

It’s not just policy—it’s execution. In Ogun State, the federal government has launched a 30MW project in Shagamu. The plan? At least 5MW in every single one of Nigeria’s 774 local government areas. That’s a national energy map being drawn in real time, powered by local solutions.

Through the Sustainable Energy Access Projects (SEAP), mini-grids are also being installed across universities and teaching hospitals. The logic is simple: power education, power healthcare, power innovation. And this logic is starting to bear fruit.

The execution of the Energizing Education Programme (EEP), an intervention by the Federal Government, implemented by the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) under the Buhari administration, to rejuvenate the education system by providing uninterrupted electricity supply to 37 federal universities and 7 teaching hospitals across the country has continued smoothly under the Tinubu administration.

The list of beneficiaries under Phase I includes:

1. Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University

2. Bayero University, Kano

3. University of Agriculture, Makurdi

4. Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun

5. Federal University Ndufu-Alike, Ikwo

6. Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka

7. Obafemi Awolowo University and Teaching Hospital, Ile-Ife

8. Usman Danfodio University, Sokoto

9. University of Lagos, Lagos 

Phase II of the EEP has commenced aggressively under President Tinubu's administration, with commissioning set for 2025. The beneficiary institutions include:

1. Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta

2. Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike

3. University of Calabar and Teaching Hospital

4. University of Maiduguri and Teaching Hospital

5. University of Abuja

6. Federal University Gashua, Yobe

7. Nigerian Defence Academy

 Phase III of the EEP, which will be financed by the African Development Bank (AFDB) will soon begin. The beneficiaries are:

1. Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola

2. Federal University of Dutsin-Ma, Katsina

3. Federal University of Lafia, Nasarawa

4. Federal University of Lokoja, Kogi

5. Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo

6. University of Port Harcourt, Rivers

7. University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom

8. Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo

Infrastructure Gets Its Turn.

Beyond renewables, the federal government is finally tackling the elephant in the room: transmission with its target of $2.3b in investments already in full swing and already secured from funding partners. The Siemens-backed Presidential Power Initiative has moved into a critical phase, with N262.75 billion approved for substation upgrades across Onitsha, Offa, Abeokuta, Ayede, and Sokoto. Complementing this is a $328 million deal with China Machinery Engineering Company (CMEC) to rehabilitate and construct 330kV and 132kV transmission lines. This infrastructure will carry up to 7,140 megawatts—electricity that, until now, would have gone to waste due to lack of delivery capacity.

Power Minister Adebayo Adelabu put it plainly: if you don’t fix the transmission bottleneck, you’re just creating stranded capacity. This time, the government isn’t just talking about megawatts—it’s building the pipes to deliver them.

These developments matter not just technically, but symbolically. For decades, Nigeria’s power sector has been synonymous with dysfunction. These projects mark a clear departure—a deliberate shift from patchwork fixes to long-term capacity building.

Investor Confidence Is Built, Not Bought.

Private capital doesn’t land by chance. It follows clarity, stability, and long-term thinking. What’s happening now is that the Tinubu administration is providing the market signals that investors need: serious investment in infrastructure, regulatory reform, and targeted incentives.

Take the pharmaceutical sector, for instance. The federal government under Tinubu recently rolled out import duty and VAT exemptions for critical raw materials used in local drug manufacturing. It’s a simple but powerful move—one that lowers costs, boosts domestic production, and reduces dependency on foreign suppliers. For a country struggling with healthcare access and affordability, this is a game-changer. It’s also a signal. When governments make it easier to produce, invest, and compete, capital responds. This was probably what incentivized Emzor Pharmaceuticals, a leading pharmaceutical company in Nigeria, to announce a ground-breaking $230 million investment in a new Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) manufacturing plant. The Nation reported recently that this strategic move is set to significantly enhance local drug production, reduce reliance on imported pharmaceutical ingredients, and further strengthen Nigeria’s healthcare system. The significance of the import duty and VAT exemptions must not be overlooked. APIs are active ingredients which is contained in medicine like anti-inflammatory ingredient like ibuprofen, an antibiotic like penicillin, or a pain killer like paracetamol. However, raw materials are chemical compounds that are used as a base to make an API. Emzor made the $230m investment because it knows it is going to enjoy those VAT and import duty exemptions which makes it far more efficient to import the raw materials it will need to produce those APIs for its own finished pharmaceutical productions and for the other pharmaceutical companies who would have had to otherwise import the APIs. The effect is cheaper costs of drug production and cheaper drugs for the consumer. 

The Bigger Picture

All of this is happening in a global context that is uncertain at best. Capital is more cautious. Risk appetite is lower. But Nigeria is showing that with the right mix of political will and policy clarity, it can still stand out. Foreign investors aren’t romantic. They’re calculating. They look at the fundamentals—power reliability, digital infrastructure, access to skilled labor, and regulatory stability.

The kinds of projects now being rolled out—from Visa’s data center to Sweden’s innovation hub—show that Nigeria is starting to check those boxes. And this is only the beginning. With Nigeria’s population expected to exceed 375 million by 2050, energy demand will explode. If the current trajectory continues, investments in the power sector alone could exceed $100 billion over the next 25 years. But that future isn’t automatic. It has to be earned—and maintained.

Final Thought

The Tinubu administration is laying down the tracks for a different kind of Nigerian economy—one that is powered, digitized, and investment-ready. There are still obstacles. Implementation gaps. Bureaucratic inertia. But the momentum is real, and the stakes are high.

So let’s call this what it is: a turning point. Not a miracle. Not a fluke. Just what happens when leadership, policy, and investment align. It didn’t happen by accident. These are only fragments of the broader efforts underway. But even this small sample reveals the scope and ambition of President Tinubu’s first 23 months. Structural reforms are being matched by real-world investments in people, infrastructure, and long-term national stability.

Dr. Bunmi Awoyemi is a Real Estate Developer and Builder