The Federal Government has pledged to publish a detailed breakdown of how proceeds from the removal of fuel and foreign exchange subsidies have been spent, following increasing public demands for transparency over the use of the funds.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, made the commitment on Thursday at the 7th Africa Emerging Markets Forum in Abuja while responding to concerns over whether the gains from the economic reforms had translated into improved living conditions for Nigerians.
Responding to questions from the World Bank Group’s Chief Economist and Senior Vice-President for Development Economics, Indermit Gill, Oyedele acknowledged that Nigerians were justified in asking how the subsidy savings had been utilised.
“There was a question about the subsidy savings. Where has it gone to? I’ve heard this question so many times, and it is a valid question,” he said.
The minister disclosed that the government would release a comprehensive analysis of the subsidy savings within days, stressing that it had a responsibility to account to citizens.
“We owe a duty to explain what we do to the Nigerian people. That is what transparency looks like,” Oyedele added.
He explained that the combined savings from the removal of fuel and foreign exchange subsidies amounted to about five per cent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but noted that the reforms were introduced primarily to eliminate long-standing economic distortions rather than generate additional government revenue.
According to him, a significant portion of the savings has been used to service increased debt obligations, implement the new ₦70,000 national minimum wage and finance social intervention programmes, including the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), which he said has supported more than 1.5 million students through tuition payments and monthly stipends.
On the government’s continued borrowing, Oyedele maintained that stronger revenue generation does not eliminate the need for loans where government expenditure exceeds available income.
He said borrowing remained necessary to finance budget deficits, provided the funds were invested in projects capable of generating returns that outweigh their costs.
The minister also rejected claims that the reforms had worsened poverty, arguing that the current economic hardship reflected the difficult but necessary process of correcting years of fiscal imbalances.
He said the government’s next priority was to convert macroeconomic stability into higher productivity, job creation and inclusive economic growth.
Oyedele further disclosed that the Federal Government was developing a framework to reduce the cost of capital without introducing new subsidies, saying the initiative would encourage investments in productive sectors while complementing the Central Bank of Nigeria’s efforts to curb inflation.
Earlier, Gill noted that despite improvements in government revenue, subsidy removal and a narrower fiscal deficit, many Nigerians remained unconvinced that the benefits of the reforms had reached ordinary citizens.
He urged the government to clearly demonstrate how the additional resources generated from the reforms had improved the welfare of the people.
Also speaking at the forum, the Director of Statistics at the Central Bank of Nigeria, Dr Okpanachi Moses, said findings from a study covering 36 Sub-Saharan African countries showed that food price volatility remained a major driver of inflation across the region.
He added that countries affected by conflict experienced weaker monetary policy outcomes, arguing that rebuilding food systems and implementing structural reforms would be more effective in controlling inflation than relying solely on higher interest rates.
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