• Global lender says it gave Nigeria $2.9b last year
Faulting a claim by the World Bank that Nigeria still pays subsidy on petrol, the Federal Government has reasserted that the era of petrol subsidy is “gone for good.”

Speaking yesterday on a live television programme, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, clarified that President Bola Tinubu made it clear from his first day in office that the current administration would not sustain the policy. He said the subsidy removal had translated to increased revenue to the Federation Account.

The World Bank, on Wednesday, hinted that current fuel prices in the country were not cost-reflective, adding that the government might still be paying a subsidy on petrol.

The financial institution said Nigerians should be paying about N750 per litre as against the current pump price of N650 in parts of the country. Its Lead Economist for Nigeria, Alex Sienaert, during his presentation of the Nigeria Development Update (NDU), December 2023 edition in Abuja, insisted that there was still a subsidy on petrol.

He submitted: “It does seem like petrol prices are not fully adjusting to market conditions. So, that hints at the partial return of the subsidy if we estimate what is the cost reflective of the retail PMS price of the would-be and assume that importation is done at the official FX rate.

“Of course, the liberalisation is happening with the parallel rates, which is the main supplier, the price would be even higher. These are just estimates to give you a sense of what cost-reflective pricing most likely looks like.

“We think the price of petrol should be around N750 per litre more than the N650 per litre currently paid by Nigerians.” Besides, the global lender said the most populous black nation secured $2.9 billion from it last year.

According to a World Bank document, tagged ‘International Debt Report for 2023’, Tanzania came second with $2.7 within the period.The bank stated that Nigeria secured the highest figure in 2022.

The report reads in part: “Nigeria and Tanzania were the top recipients of new financing from the World Bank in 2022, at US$2.9 billion and US$2.7 billion, respectively.”