Abuja: When President Bola Tinubu's administration clocked two years on May 29, he prided himself as having re-engineered the country's economy and restored it to the part of recovery. The President said that from the outset, his cardinal objectives, encapsulated in the Renewed Hope Agenda, were to tackle economic instability, improve security nationwide, reduce corruption, reform governance and lift Nigerians out of poverty. The President gave himself a pass mark, proclaiming, 'We have stabilised our economy and are now better positioned for growth and prepared to withstand global shocks.'
According to News Agency of Nigeria, inflation has begun to ease, with rice prices and other staples declining; the oil and gas sector is recovering; rig counts are up by over 400 percent in 2025 compared to 2021, and over 8 billion dollars in new investments have been committed. In 2025, the administration remains on track with fiscal targets; gross proceeds per barrel from crude oil are broadly aligned with forecasts as efforts intensify to ramp up production. The country's fiscal deficit has also narrowed sharply from 5.4 percent of GDP in 2023 to 3.0 percent in 2024.
The administration achieved this through improved revenue generation and greater transparency in government finances; in the first quarter of this year, it recorded more than N6 trillion in revenue. Ways and Means financing, a major contributor to high and sticky inflation, has been discontinued. The NNPC, no longer burdened by unsustainable fuel subsidies, is now a net contributor to the Federation Account; the country is also achieving fuel supply security through local refining. President Tinubu was emphatic that the country's debt position was improving.
While foreign exchange revaluation pushed the debt-to-GDP ratio to around 53 percent, the debt service-to-revenue ratio dropped from nearly 100 percent in 2022 to under 40 percent by 2024. The country has paid off its IMF obligations and grown its net external reserves by almost 500 percent from 4 billion dollars in 2023 to over 23 billion dollars by the end of 2024. Thanks to reforms, state revenue increased by over N6 trillion in 2024, ensuring that subnational governments can reduce their debt burden, meet salaries and pension obligations on a timely basis, and invest more in critical infrastructure and human capital development.
Experts, both domestic and international, share the President's view that the dark days are truly behind, and that Nigerians are beginning to look ahead into the future with optimism. This optimism resonates globally, with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) acknowledging that the Tinubu administration has, within a space of two years, restored the country to the path of growth. The World Bank projects that Nigeria's economy will grow by 3.6 percent in 2025, building on a 3.4 percent growth in 2024, attributing the growth to macroeconomic reforms that are stabilising the business environment.
As far back as November 2024, the IMF had stated that the reforms introduced by the Tinubu administration were working and producing the desired outcomes. Kristalina Georgieva, the Managing Director of IMF, commended Tinubu on the reforms introduced by his government during the 2024 G20 Leaders' Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The IMF boss noted that the reforms were very strong and very difficult to implement and was pleased that the government had been able to sustain them. She concluded that the reforms were effective and that the benefits were beginning to be felt by Nigerians.
Mr. Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, affirmed at the World Bank/IMF 2025 Spring Meetings in Washington D.C., that Nigeria was on the right track. He stated that the IMF also said Nigeria's resilience, created by the macroeconomic reforms, had stabilised the economy, enabling the country to cope with the introduction of reciprocal tariffs in America and the turbulence that it caused. At the World Bank annual meetings, many leading financiers, leaders, and multilateral institutions expressed support for Nigeria's ongoing reforms.
Nigerians themselves are now aligning with the positive global assessment of the performance of the Tinubu administration at mid-term. Dr. Chinyere Almona, Director-General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), agreed that Tinubu's bold macroeconomic reforms had corrected long-standing structural distortions. She noted significant policy shifts such as the removal of fuel subsidies, exchange rate liberalisation, and attempts to shore up public revenues through tax reforms. Similarly, Mr. Kola Adesina, the Managing Director of Sahara Group, hailed President Tinubu's energy sector reforms, which he said had improved transparency, regulatory consistency and expanded investment opportunities.
The price of petrol, which rose significantly in the heady days of fuel subsidy removal, has reduced, with scarcity and queues at petrol stations becoming a thing of the past. In the power sector, the Tinubu administration has resolved long-standing financial obligations, enabling new investors to come in and existing ones to deepen their investments. The government's energy transition, driven by a focus on natural gas and climate-conscious solutions, is gaining ground. The administration's efforts in the last two years represent a solid foundation for Nigeria's future, with the current energy landscape anchored on reliability, accessibility, and affordability.
One of Tinubu's most impactful achievements is believed to be his bold tax reform. By the end of 2024, the country's tax-to-GDP ratio rose from 10 percent to over 13.5 percent, a remarkable leap in just one year. Experts say this is a result of deliberate improvement in tax administration and policies designed to make the tax system fairer, more efficient, and more growth-oriented. The administration has eliminated the burden of multiple taxation, making it easier for small businesses to grow and join the formal economy.
Another indication that the Nigerian economy has turned the corner, according to experts, is the robust performance of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), considered the barometer with which the economy is measured. Mr. Omoniyi Akinsiju, the Chairman of the Independent Media and Policy Initiative (IMPI), noted that almost all companies that recorded losses in the first quarter of 2024 were back to profit-making by the first quarter of 2025. The listed loss-making companies and others had witnessed a rebound, recording not just profits, but impressive profit margins, indicating the impact of the Tinubu administration's economic reforms.
Akinsiju also highlighted the country's progress in economic diversification, noting that the policies deployed by the Tinubu administration increased Nigeria's non-oil exports to 1.791 billion dollars in the first quarter of 2025, up 24.75 percent from the same period last year. The Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) reported an increase in regional exports to ECOWAS countries and intra-African trade, marking significant growth.
In the area of security, the Tinubu administration has recorded successes amid new challenges. The armed forces have restored order in some areas of the North-West, hitherto under the control of bandits, reducing and eliminating threats to lives and livelihoods. With the success achieved, farmers are back tilling the land, and highways, once dangerous for travelers, have become safer. After two years in office, stakeholders agree that Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda has delivered tangible dividends and hope for sustainable growth.