General News of Thursday, 14 August 2025

Source: www.guardian.ng

Tinubu has stabilised Nigeria's economy, says Okonjo-Iweala

Ngonzi Okonjo-Iweala Ngonzi Okonjo-Iweala

The Director-General (DG) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has lauded President Bola Tinubu and his team for stabilising Nigeria's economy.

Okonjo-Iweala praised Tinubu over the stability of Nigeria’s economy in an interview with reporters, following her visit to the president on Thursday.

"We think that President Bola Tinubu and his team have worked hard to stabilise Nigeria's economy, and you cannot really improve an economy unless it is stable," she said.

"So, President Tinubu has to be given the credit for the stability of the economy. The reforms have been in the right direction. What is needed next is growth.

"Nigeria now needs to grow the economy and we need to build social safety nets, so that people who are feeling the pinch of the reforms can also have some support to be able to weather the hardship.

"That is the next step. So, how do we build social safety nets to help Nigerians cushion the hardship they are feeling and then, how do we grow the economy so that we can create more jobs and put more money in people's pockets? These are the issues that we discussed with Mr. President."

President Tinubu had declared, after assuming office on May 29, 2023, that the era of the Federal Government paying subsidies on fuel had come to an end.

That decision led to an increase in the price of the product, with a litre of fuel selling for as much as N1,200, leading to an astronomical increase in the price of foodstuffs, with common Nigerians barely managing to survive.