FG Moves to Review Economic Reforms, Vows to Deliver Results

The Federal Government has inaugurated a Ministerial Advisory Committee to provide independent, evidence-based reviews of its economic reforms as it seeks to ensure that recent policy changes deliver real benefits to Nigerians.

Speaking during the inauguration of the committee at the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja on Tuesday, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said the committee would provide external, data-driven advice to improve government decision-making and help translate reforms into better living standards for citizens.

He described the committee as a new approach to governance through what he called a “public-policy-private partnership.”

“Today is not simply about constituting another committee. It is about institutionalising a new way of thinking, a new way of solving problems, a new way of connecting ideas with implementation and strengthening the quality of economic decision-making in service of the Nigerian people,” Oyedele said.

The minister said the administration of President Bola Tinubu had implemented some of the country’s most difficult economic reforms over the past three years, including the removal of petrol subsidies, exchange rate unification and comprehensive tax reforms. He said the next phase was to ensure Nigerians began to experience the benefits of those policies.

“We want to move from reform to results,” he said.

Oyedele acknowledged that the reforms had placed short-term pressure on households, businesses and communities but insisted they were necessary because “sustainable development cannot be built on fiscal illusion.”

He said the success of the reforms would not be measured by the number of policies introduced but by improvements in the lives of Nigerians.

“The true measure of reform is not the number of policies announced or macroeconomic indicators cited. It is the number of jobs created, inflation declining, the naira stabilising and businesses investing with confidence. It is about the number of lives improved. That is why this committee has been established,” he said.

According to the minister, the committee will not replace existing government institutions or exercise executive powers but will provide independent and constructive advice to strengthen policy decisions. He urged members to identify emerging risks, assess the wider effects of government policies and recommend international best practices.

“The natural instinct in government is often to act quickly, to announce, to declare progress and to move to the next initiative. But quick actions without rigorous analysis frequently create new problems while solving old ones,” he said.

Oyedele said the committee would focus on economic policy advisory, public financial management, economic coordination and ensuring reforms produce measurable outcomes. He added that the government’s goal remained achieving seven per cent annual real GDP growth and building a one trillion-dollar economy by 2030.

“The government’s aspiration remains bold, achieving seven per cent annual real GDP growth and building a $1tn economy by 2030. This requires thinking differently, questioning assumptions, challenging long-held theories and developing a strategy that stretches us while remaining deeply grounded in economic reality,” he said.

He also stressed that economic reforms could only succeed through effective coordination among government agencies, collaboration with state governments and stronger partnerships with the private sector.

“A fiscal reform that looks flawless on paper but fails to improve conditions for Nigerian businesses is not reform; it is disguised bureaucracy,” he said.

The minister encouraged members of the committee to challenge government assumptions instead of merely endorsing official positions.

“We do not need this committee to validate what we have already decided. We need you to challenge our assumptions, point out the trade-offs we might be papering over and tell us the truth we may not want to hear. Healthy, fact-based disagreement is not a weakness; it is an advantage,” he said.

He assured members that their recommendations would directly influence decisions within the ministry and the advice presented to President Tinubu.

“I promise you that your counsel will be heard. Your advice will not languish in forgotten files. It will actively inform ministerial decisions and the guidance I provide to the President,” Oyedele said.

Responding on behalf of the committee, its Chairman and Managing Director of Sterling Bank, Abubakar Suleiman, assured the government that members would focus on practical and implementable recommendations rather than lengthy theoretical reports.

“We promise you that’s not what we’ll give you,” Suleiman said.

He added that the committee would help identify practical solutions that government officials might not have enough time to develop because of their daily responsibilities.

“Our job is to free you to keep running this ministry and keep coordinating this economy while we take time off to think about things that, if you were not on this job, you would have been able to do yourself,” he said.

Suleiman also pledged that the committee would serve as a bridge between government and citizens by providing honest feedback on how economic reforms were affecting businesses, farmers and communities.

“We will try to listen and hear what people are really saying, where Nigerians are really feeling the pain, which of the policies is really working, and then we’ll bring that back to you in an environment that you can work with,” he said.

Earlier, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Raymond Omachi, said the committee consisted of economists, public finance experts, governance professionals, development practitioners and private sector representatives who would provide strategic advice to strengthen fiscal sustainability, improve public confidence and support Nigeria’s economic transformation.