ABUJA — President Bola Tinubu has outperformed previous Nigerian administrations in strengthening the economy and attracting foreign capital, despite operating without the benefit of historical oil windfalls, according to a report by a Nigerian think tank.
In a policy statement issued by the Independent Media and Policy Initiative (IMPI), the group asserted that successive governments between 1999 and 2015 failed to convert oil booms into enduring industrial assets, instead funneling capital into short-term consumption, debt settlements, and an unconstitutional Excess Crude Account.”Because the ECA lacked constitutional backing, state governors routinely forced distributions that depleted the fund from $22 billion in 2008 to under $3 billion by 2014, with the funds predominantly used for recurrent public sector consumption rather than capital infrastructure,” said IMPI Chairman Omoniyi Akinsiju.
The group noted that market corrections introduced under President Tinubu in 2023—notably foreign exchange unification and the elimination of fuel subsidies—have successfully re-engineered Nigeria’s external balance sheet.
According to IMPI, gross foreign reserves expanded from $45 billion to $55 billion by the third quarter of 2026, providing over 14 months of import cover and triggering sovereign credit rating upgrades from agencies including Moody’s, S&P, and Fitch.
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