President Bola Tinubu marked Nigeria’s 65th Independence Day on Wednesday with a defiant message: the country’s economic hardships are easing and the painful reforms of the last two years are beginning to pay off.
Speaking in a televised national address, Tinubu said his administration had inherited “a near-collapsed economy” and had no choice but to scrap costly fuel subsidies and unify multiple exchange rates, despite the inflationary shock that followed.
“We chose the path of tomorrow over the comfort of today,” Tinubu said. “Less than three years later, the seeds of those difficult but necessary decisions are bearing fruit… The worst is over, I say. Yesterday’s pains are giving way to relief.”
Economic Gains Highlighted
Tinubu cited several data points as proof of progress: GDP growth of 4.23% in the second quarter of 2025, Nigeria’s fastest pace in four years and above IMF projections; inflation easing to 20.12% in August, the lowest in three years; five straight quarters of trade surpluses; and oil output rebounding to 1.68 million barrels per day after years of theft and underinvestment.
He added that external reserves had risen to $42.03 billion, the highest since 2019, while non-oil exports had climbed to nearly half of total exports, a sign that diversification was taking root.
“We are now a net exporter,” Tinubu said, noting that manufactured goods exports had jumped 173% in the last year. “Nigeria is selling more to the world than we are buying, strengthening our currency and creating jobs at home.”
Tinubu also pointed to record non-oil revenues, a drop in the debt-service-to-revenue ratio from 97% to below 50%, and renewed investor confidence. The stock market, he said, had surged to an all-time high of 142,000 points, while credit rating agencies had upgraded Nigeria’s outlook.
Social Investments and Infrastructure
Acknowledging that reforms had left millions struggling, Tinubu said the government had disbursed ₦330 billion to eight million vulnerable households as cash transfers under its social investment programme.
“We are racing against time,” he said. “We must build the roads we need, repair decrepit schools and hospitals, and power our industries and homes. Our administration is setting things right.”
He highlighted transport and energy projects, including the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway, the Kano-Maradi and Kaduna-Kano rail lines, and plans to complete the Eastern Rail Project with $3 billion in new funding. Domestic refining of petroleum products had also begun for the first time in four decades, he said.
Critics Push Back
Despite Tinubu’s upbeat tone, many Nigerians remain unconvinced. More than 129 million people live below the poverty line, according to World Bank estimates, and food insecurity has worsened. The World Food Programme has recently shut down 150 nutrition centres in the northeast due to funding cuts.
Labour unions have staged strikes over rising costs, while opposition leaders argue that government relief has been slow and uneven. Critics also question the transparency of the ₦25,000 cash transfer scheme, urging the publication of a beneficiaries’ register.
Peter Obi, opposition leader of the Labour Party, has accused Tinubu of focusing on “elite-driven projects” while millions cannot afford food. Ordinary Nigerians echo those concerns. In Lagos markets, traders complain that transport costs and food prices remain out of reach, even as official inflation figures show improvement.
Tinubu acknowledged the pain but urged citizens to remain patient. “I salute your endurance, support, and understanding,” he said. “I will continue to work for you and justify the confidence you reposed in me to steer the ship of our nation to a safe harbour.”
Whether Nigerians feel that turnaround on the ground is another matter. For now, Tinubu has placed a bet: that the numbers he cites will, in time, translate into relief in people’s lives.
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