A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and former president of the Nigerian Bar Association, Olisa Agbakoba, has described the current exchange‑rate volatility as one of Africa’s worst currency performances, noting that the naira depreciated by more than 40 per cent in 2024.
In a letter to the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, dated 7 November 2025, and sent to The Guardian on Sunday, Agbakoba referenced the minister’s recent assertion that “Nigeria Turns Towards Prosperity” and acknowledged the Tinubu administration’s achievements — Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth, declining inflation, stabilised exchange rates, increased foreign reserves, and improved oil production — while emphasising that currency instability remains the nation’s most pressing challenge.
He argued that the naira lacks fundamental economic pillars that inspire confidence to hold and use the currency, and to address this, Agbakoba proposed three transformative reforms capable of unlocking over 1.5 quadrillion naira in economic value.
According to him, a comprehensive land and real‑estate titling reform would convert roughly 90 per cent of Nigerian land that currently carries defective or no titles into legally recognised assets, releasing an estimated $900 billion of dead capital and enabling collateralised lending.
He said: “Unlocking trapped property assets that are presently dead capital will encourage investors who currently prefer to buy properties abroad to buy in Nigeria. This will deepen naira‑denominated asset markets, reduce dependency on dollar‑denominated assets for wealth storage, and strengthen demand for the naira by creating viable local investment alternatives. Using the World Bank and PwC’s conservative estimates of $900 billion in dead capital, at today’s rate of N1,500 to $1, this represents 1.5 quadrillion naira. The economic impact of releasing 1.5 quadrillion naira into productive use cannot be overstated.”
He also mentioned that expanding the naira credit economy through a robust legal and policy framework could inject N60 trillion into the economy if 200 million Nigerians accessed N300,000 each in credit, thereby boosting domestic consumption and reducing import demand.
He added, “Naira‑denominated credit will boost domestic consumption of locally produced goods and services, reduce import demand and foreign‑exchange pressure. A thriving naira credit market will deepen domestic financial markets and make the naira more attractive as an asset and reduce the speculative attacks that drive exchange‑rate volatility. When citizens can access credit in naira to own homes, start businesses, and build wealth, the currency gains intrinsic value and stability.”
Thirdly, Agbakoba stated that mechanising agriculture would shift the sector from subsistence to large‑scale production, increasing productivity, generating export earnings, and eliminating costly food imports, which would strengthen foreign‑exchange supply and support the naira.
He said, “Moving from subsistence to mechanised agriculture will increase productivity, reduce post‑harvest losses, enhance food security, and position Nigeria as a net agricultural exporter. Agricultural exports will generate substantial foreign‑exchange earnings, increasing FX supply and strengthening the naira. More critically, food self‑sufficiency will eliminate the need to import basic staples, currently a major source of FX demand.
“Reducing food imports alone could save billions of dollars annually, directly stabilising exchange rates and reducing imported inflation. When a nation feeds itself and exports the surplus, its currency strengthens naturally. Agricultural transformation thus creates a powerful fundamental: robust FX earnings and reduced import dependency that provides lasting stability to the naira and shields it from volatility.”
Agbakoba said these measures, combined with reforms in oil and gas, maritime optimisation, and manufacturing, would provide tangible backing for the naira, curb volatility, and lay a foundation for long‑term prosperity.
He projected that with disciplined execution, the reforms could be realised within a 10‑ to 20‑year horizon, citing the recent success of the tax reform as evidence that ambitious policy is achievable.
He warned that the work would be painstaking but doable and attached his October policy paper titled “Devolution is the Solution – Foundational Reform Agenda for Nigeria’s Transformation” for the minister’s consideration.
He said, “We currently have one of the highest currency volatilities in Africa, with the naira depreciating by over 40 per cent in 2024 alone, ranking among the continent’s worst‑performing currencies. With 1 billion naira worth less than 1 million dollars, demand naturally tilts toward the dollar.
The root cause is simple. The naira lacks fundamentals — tangible economic pillars that give people reason to hold and use it. To reverse this, we must create fundamentals to back the naira. I propose three transformative reforms that could create these fundamentals and unlock over 1.5 quadrillion naira in economic value.”
