President Bola Tinubu said on Wednesday that his administration had recorded 12 “remarkable economic milestones as a result of the implementation of our sound fiscal and monetary policies.”
The Nigerian leader spoke in a nationwide broadcast to mark Nigeria’s 65th Independence Anniversary.
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The president listed 12 major milestones, which he said were proof that the economy was recovering.
He said the second quarter GDP grew by 4.23 per cent, the fastest in four years, and above the International Monetary Fund’s 3.4 per cent forecast.
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Inflation, which had spiked following the removal of fuel subsidies and unification of exchange rates, fell to 20.12 per cent in August 2025, the lowest level in three years.
He said non-oil revenue had reached a record N20 trillion by August, hitting the 2025 target months ahead of schedule, while September alone generated N3.65 trillion, 411 per cent higher than May 2023.
Fiscal health had improved with the debt service-to-revenue ratio falling below 50 per cent from 97 per cent.
The president also noted that external reserves rose to $42.03 billion in September, the highest since 2019.
Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio increased to 13.5 per cent, up from less than 10 per cent, with a new tax law coming into effect in January to expand the base while giving relief to low-income earners.
He said Nigeria recorded surpluses on trade for five consecutive quarters, with a 44.3 per cent rise in Q2 2025 to N7.46 trillion ($4.74 billion). Non-oil exports now represent 48 per cent of total exports compared with 52 per cent for oil.
“Nigeria is now selling more to the world than we are buying,” Mr Tinubu said, calling the shift “a fundamental change that strengthens our currency and creates jobs at home.”
Oil production, which had fallen to barely one million barrels per day in May 2023, climbed to 1.68 million barrels, supported by better security in the Niger Delta and new investments.
For the first time in four decades, the country refined petrol domestically and became Africa’s leading exporter of aviation fuel.
He said the naira had stabilised after two years of turbulence, with the gap between official and parallel market rates narrowing sharply due to foreign exchange reforms.
“The multiple exchange rates, which fostered corruption and arbitrage, are now part of history,” Mr Tinubu declared.
Under his administration’s social investment scheme, N330 billion had been disbursed to eight million households, many of whom received one or two tranches of N25,000 each.
Solid minerals also rebounded strongly, with coal mining expanding 57.5 per cent in Q2 after a 22 per cent contraction in Q1.
The president added that transport infrastructure was being expanded nationwide.
Rail and water transport grew by 40 per cent and 27 per cent respectively, while projects such as the 284-kilometre Kano-Katsina-Maradi line, the Kaduna-Kano line, the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and Sokoto-Badagry Highway were underway.
The Federal Executive Council recently approved $3 billion to complete the Eastern Rail Project.
He said global investors and rating agencies were taking notice. Nigeria’s stock market, he noted, had surged to 142,000 points in September 2025 from 55,000 points in May 2023.
The Central Bank also cut interest rates for the first time in five years, citing improved macroeconomic stability.
President Tinubu admitted that the real measure of progress went beyond numbers.
“The accurate measure of our success will not be limited to economic statistics alone, but rather in the food on our families’ tables, the quality of education our children receive, the electricity in our homes, and the security in our communities,” he said.
READ ALSO: I inherited a near-collapse economy, the worst is over, Tinubu tells Nigerians
The president acknowledged the high cost of living and urged citizens to embrace productivity and patriotism. “Let us be a nation of producers, not just consumers.
Let us farm our land and build factories to process our produce. Let us patronise ‘Made-in-Nigeria’ goods. I say Nigeria first. Let us pay our taxes.”
“My message is hope and a call to action… With Almighty God on our side, I can assure you that the dawn of a new, prosperous, self-reliant Nigeria is here,” he concluded.
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