President Bola Tinubu has announced the liquidation of the country’s revenue debt totaling over N30 trillion.
He disclosed this in a national address on Tuesday morning, October 1, 2024, to commemorate Nigeria’s 64th anniversary of independence.
Governor Bola Tinubu said the central bank’s more disciplined approach to monetary policy management had brought stability and predictability to the foreign exchange market. “We inherited over $33 billion in reserves 16 months ago. Since then, we have repaid the inherited foreign exchange balance of $7 billion and cleared revenue obligations of over 30 trillion naira. We have also reduced our debt service ratio from 97% to 68%. Despite these efforts, we have managed to maintain our foreign exchange reserves at $37 billion,” he said.
Ways and Means are funds that the CBN lends directly to the federal government and, according to CBN law, cannot exceed 5 percent of the federal government’s actual receipts in the previous year. However, as the peg was exceeded, the total revenue liability reached 30 trillion naira.
In July, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Olayemi Cardoso said the country was currently burdened with loans.
President Bola Tinubu stressed that Nigeria’s economy is currently undergoing significant reforms aimed at making it stronger and more sustainable. He warned that failure to address the fiscal misalignments that contributed to the economic downturn could lead the country into an unstable future with potentially serious consequences.
Tinubu also noted that thanks to these reforms, Nigeria attracted more than $30 billion in foreign direct investment in the past year, reflecting growing confidence in the country’s economic prospects.
