BANGKOK, THAILAND—The federal government has emphasized the necessity of social support networks to mitigate the effects of economic reforms, stating that vulnerable Nigerians must be able to endure current adversity in order to reap the benefits of the policies.
According to Taiwo Oyedele, Minister of Finance and Economy and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, many Nigerians live in poverty, so the government must support the populace while enacting policies meant to boost the economy.
Oyedele stated that the government must take into account how vulnerable citizens would deal with the immediate effects of reforms during a panel discussion on Africa’s Golden Future at the ongoing International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank 2026 Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand.
“The first one was subsidy removal on fuel products, and many people had not paid attention to the fact that the biggest component of that subsidy wasn’t the fuel product itself; it was the foreign exchange. So, if we had done forex flotation before fuel, it would have been impossible,” he said.
Oyedele explained that fuel prices rose following subsidy removal before the foreign exchange reform triggered another increase. “So, by doing fuel first, the price went up by maybe 100 per cent and then two weeks later, that was quick, by the way, was the forex reform, and then it went up again,” he said.
“The third most significant reform was tax reform. Tax reform wasn’t meant to be painful. It was bringing relief, but level of trust was quite low, and it was controversial. It was difficult, but we pulled it off.”
“So, most of the reforms we did in Nigeria are either enacted into law or embedded into institutions because you need to be able to do that for sustainability, and the last one is you must stay the course.”
“People can easily tell that because of the reform, life is harder. But you need to show them without the reform, it will be hardest, and it doesn’t mean they will believe you the first time. But you keep saying it, Bear in mind, particularly in Africa, many of our citizens live in poverty. Many of them are not well educated. When people are hungry, and they are angry, they cannot be rational.”
He stressed that social support systems were necessary to help citizens meet their immediate needs while the government pursued its economic objectives. “So, how do you keep these people being able to survive? Because for them, they have to be alive to see tomorrow that you are promising, and this is where the support system becomes very important,” he said.
We’ve heard repeated calls for patience and perseverance but patience cannot be endless. When will Nigerians begin to feel the benefits of these reforms? How long must people endure rising hardship, hunger and loss before relief arrives? Reform gains mean little if they come only after families have been pushed to the brink. Nigerians deserve a clear timeline and help now, not promises later.
