Nigeria’s Reforms Can Transform Africa — Oyedele

FEDERAL MINISTRY OF FINANCE

PRESS RELEASE

Nigeria’s Reforms Can Transform Africa — Oyedele

BANGKOK, Thailand — 14 October 2026 — Nigeria’s experience with economic reform offers lessons for African countries seeking sustainable growth, stronger regional trade and better living standards, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said at the Africa’s Golden Future Forum on Wednesday.
Oyedele pointed to the removal of distortionary fuel subsidy, exchange-rate liberalisation and tax reform as the pillars of Nigeria’s programme, stressing that sequencing matters: removing the subsidy before liberalising the exchange rate helped manage the impact of rising costs, while consistent communication, strong institutions and policy consistency sustained public confidence through the transition. These reforms, he said, are laying the foundation for inclusive growth and job creation, but African countries must also tackle the structural barriers limiting trade and investment across the continent.
He called for removing trade barriers, improving infrastructure and deepening regional integration to unlock the African Continental Free Trade Area, citing energy, logistics, storage and processing infrastructure as critical to competitiveness. Nigeria, he said, is developing an economic policy framework to better align trade, fiscal and monetary policy, and is rolling out a National Single Window to simplify border procedures and improve trade efficiency.
Oyedele also stressed protecting vulnerable citizens through reform, noting that Nigeria’s cash transfer programme has reached more than 10 million households and its education support has benefited over 1.5 million students.
African Development Bank President Sidi Ould Tah called for policy commitments to translate into tangible results, citing AfDB budget support for reforms in Nigeria and Egypt and its work with partners to expand electricity access, including Mission 300 — a World Bank-led initiative to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030, under which more than 30 countries have signed energy compacts requiring coordinated reform, investment and private-sector participation.
Ould Tah noted that intra-African trade remains at about 15 percent of the continent’s total trade, against 40 and 60 percent in other regions, and said the Bank directs over 60 percent of its financing to infrastructure, including regional connectivity projects. He added that the African Development Fund’s regional financing mechanism can cover up to 90 percent of eligible costs for projects spanning more than two countries, helping close financing gaps that often stall cross-border infrastructure.
Efe Ovuakporie
Head of Media
Federal Ministry of Finance