ABUJA The Federal Government has said the removal of the petrol subsidy and foreign exchange reforms implemented by President Bola Tinubu’s administration generated N15.8 trillion in additional resources for the Federation between June 2023 and December 2025.
The disclosure was made on Wednesday, August 19, by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Prof. Taiwo Oyedele, during a media conference on the government’s Nigeria Reforms Scorecard, titled “The Benefits, Costs and Harms Prevented.”
The presentation followed President Bola Tinubu’s call for Nigerians to be given a detailed account of the economic reforms introduced since 2023, including their achievements, costs and the potential economic harm the government believes the measures prevented.
According to Oyedele, the N15.8 trillion generated through the combined effect of subsidy removal and foreign exchange reforms was not a separate cash deposit labelled “subsidy savings.” Rather, the reforms increased the naira value of revenues accruing to the Federation and created additional fiscal resources.
The Federal Government’s own share of the N15.8 trillion was put at N5.4 trillion, while approximately N10.4 trillion was shared among state and local governments. In addition, the Federal Government generated about N3.1 trillion in incremental independent revenue, bringing its total incremental resources from subsidy-related gains, independent revenue and additional borrowing to N20.4 trillion during the period.
Where the additional resources went
Oyedele said the additional resources helped the government meet rising expenditure obligations and finance interventions intended to cushion Nigerians from the immediate effects of the reforms.
The scorecard put the Federal Government’s total incremental expenditure between June 2023 and December 2025 at N30.64 trillion.
The largest component was N9.39 trillion spent on wage adjustments, minimum-wage increases and allowances for public workers. Another N9.37 trillion was attributed to additional external debt-servicing costs, while about N6.47 trillion went into strategic infrastructure development.
The government also reported spending about N3.14 trillion on electricity subsidies, N1.24 trillion on additional domestic debt-service costs and N423.8 billion on social-welfare transfers.
Oyedele said the reforms had also supported the payment of salaries and pensions, settlement of pension arrears and gratuities, infrastructure development, student loans through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), affordable credit for consumers and small businesses, subsidised housing and mortgage schemes, agricultural interventions and social transfers targeted at about 15 million vulnerable households.
Debt costs rise as naira adjusts
The scorecard also highlighted significant costs associated with the reforms.
According to the figures presented, Nigeria incurred N10.61 trillion in additional debt-service costs between June 2023 and December 2025. Of this amount, N9.37 trillion was linked to the naira’s depreciation and its effect on servicing foreign-currency debt, while N1.24 trillion was attributed to higher domestic borrowing costs following monetary tightening.
The additional debt-service burden was higher than the N6.47 trillion spent on strategic infrastructure during the same period, underscoring the fiscal pressure created by the currency adjustment and higher interest rates.
The government, however, argues that the reforms have improved Nigeria’s fiscal position and prevented an even more severe financial crisis. Oyedele said the debt-service-to-revenue ratio, which was around 100 per cent in 2022, is projected at about 50 per cent in 2026, with the scorecard estimating that it could have risen to between 100 and 200 per cent without the reforms.
Foreign exchange market stabilises
Another major claim in the scorecard concerns Nigeria’s foreign exchange market.
Reuters reported that the reforms narrowed the gap between the official and parallel-market exchange rates to less than five per cent, compared with a gap of more than 60 per cent previously. The government says the reforms also helped strengthen public finances, rebuild foreign reserves and restore investor confidence.
However, the naira’s adjustment has also been one of the most painful aspects of the reforms for households and businesses, contributing to higher prices and increased living costs.
Reuters reported that Nigeria’s economy grew 3.89 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, down from 4.07 per cent in the final quarter of 2025, indicating that macroeconomic stabilisation has not yet translated into rapid economic growth.
Government acknowledges the pain
While presenting the scorecard as evidence of progress, the government acknowledged that the reforms have imposed substantial costs on Nigerians.
The fuel subsidy removal and exchange-rate reforms triggered sharp increases in the cost of fuel, transportation, food and other goods and services. The government’s argument is that the immediate hardship must be weighed against the financial pressures and economic instability it says the reforms were designed to prevent.
The government has also sought to shift the assessment of its reforms beyond government revenue and macroeconomic indicators. In July, Oyedele said the administration planned to track poverty, real income per capita and inequality as measures of whether the reforms were translating into what he described as “shared prosperity.”
President Tinubu, in announcing the scorecard, said Nigerians deserved to see the numbers behind the reforms and understand how the policies had affected households, businesses and the wider economy.
The latest presentation therefore represents an attempt by the administration to provide a financial account of its most consequential economic decisions since taking office in 2023 while making the case that, despite the hardship associated with the reforms, the measures have strengthened Nigeria’s economic foundations and prevented potentially greater fiscal and economic damage.
Source: Federal Government’s Nigeria Reforms Scorecard presentation, supported by reports from Reuters, Vanguard and Nairametrics.
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