President Bola Tinubu has pledged to reduce the cost of living, create millions of productive jobs and expand opportunities for Nigerians as his administration shifts its focus from economic stabilisation to what he described as a new phase of shared prosperity.
Tinubu made the commitment in a nationwide broadcast on Thursday to mark Nigeria’s 66th Independence Anniversary, saying the government’s next priority was to ensure that economic reforms translated into improved living conditions for citizens.
The president said lowering the cost of producing and transporting goods would be central to efforts to make food and other essential commodities more affordable. He identified expanded mechanised irrigation, dry season farming, improved access to seeds and fertiliser, agricultural mechanisation, storage and transport infrastructure as key measures.
“We are therefore placing jobs, enterprise, and industrial growth at the heart of our government’s policies,” Tinubu said, adding that the government would use Nigeria’s gas resources to power industries and support businesses seeking to revive factories in industrial centres.
He also pledged increased investment in digital connectivity, skills development, infrastructure and access to finance to enable Nigerian businesses to expand and create employment.
Tinubu said Nigeria’s young population represented a major economic opportunity, with millions of young Nigerians entering adulthood each year. He said government policies would seek to turn the country’s demographic strength into productive employment and enterprise.
The president acknowledged that many households continue to struggle with the costs of food, education, healthcare and transportation. He attributed these pressures to longstanding challenges including low productivity, inadequate infrastructure and limited economic opportunities.
He said the government would strengthen social protection for vulnerable households while improving the National Social Register to better target assistance. He also cited the Nigerian Education Loan Fund and consumer credit initiatives as measures intended to widen access to education and productive assets.
Tinubu said the government had moved beyond what he described as the emergency phase of economic reforms and was now focused on ensuring that growth generated tangible benefits for households and businesses.
He said the economy had grown by more than 4 percent in 2026, while inflation had fallen from its peak, foreign reserves had been rebuilt and the foreign exchange market had stabilised. He also said Nigeria recorded more than $6 billion in non oil export revenue in 2025. These figures were presented by the president as evidence of improving economic conditions.
The president, however, acknowledged that millions of Nigerians remain under economic pressure and said the government could not reverse problems accumulated over decades within a single four year term.
He pledged that the administration would pursue sustained economic growth and the creation of “millions of productive opportunities” while maintaining support for vulnerable citizens.
The government’s emphasis on employment and lower living costs comes as households continue to assess the effects of economic reforms on prices, incomes and purchasing power. The success of the next phase will depend on whether increased production, investment and employment translate into measurable improvements in household welfare.
Tinubu said the government’s objective was ultimately to build an economy in which farmers could produce at lower cost, businesses could access reliable power and finance, and young Nigerians could find productive work.
“The age of reform has done its work. Now begins the age of prosperity,” he said.
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