President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday declared that Nigeria has turned the corner economically and that “the worst is over,” as he reeled out key achievements of his administration in a national broadcast to mark the country’s 65th Independence anniversary.
Tinubu said his government’s painful but necessary reforms, including fuel subsidy removal and foreign exchange unification, were dismantling decades of distortions and freeing up resources for development.
“We now have more money to build the Nigeria we deserve,” the President stated, insisting that the sacrifices of Nigerians were beginning to yield tangible results.
He cited recent economic data showing that Nigeria’s GDP grew by 4.23 percent in the second quarter of 2025, the fastest in four years.
Inflation, he said, fell to 20.12 percent in August, the lowest in three years, while external reserves rose to $42.03 billion, the highest since 2019. He added that Nigeria had now recorded five straight quarters of trade surpluses, while crude oil production had recovered to 1.68 million barrels per day.
Tinubu further revealed that non-oil revenues had surpassed ₦20 trillion this year, reducing the debt-service-to-revenue ratio from nearly 97 percent to below 50 percent.
On social investment, he announced that ₦330 billion had been disbursed as direct cash transfers to more than eight million vulnerable households. He also highlighted the National Student Loan Fund (NELFUND), which has so far disbursed ₦99.5 billion to 510,000 students in 228 institutions, alongside youth-focused initiatives such as Credicorp, YouthCred, and iDICE.
Speaking on infrastructure, the President listed projects such as the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Sokoto-Badagry Highway, Kano–Katsina–Maradi standard gauge railway, and the Eastern Rail Project, which he said would expand trade and boost productivity.
On security, Tinubu praised the armed forces for “significant gains” against insurgency, banditry, and kidnapping, noting that displaced persons were returning to their homes.
While acknowledging that reforms had caused hardship, the President urged Nigerians to remain patient and resilient.
“Nation-building is a collective duty. With our resources freed, our economy recovering, and our people determined, the Nigeria we dream of is within reach,” he said.
He stressed that true progress would only be measured by improved living standards, affordable food, secure communities, and quality education.
