…Says trade policy must support domestic production

The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has called for greater accountability at the subnational level, urging citizens to demand measurable development outcomes from state governments following the significant expansion of their fiscal space through higher statutory allocations and, in many cases, stronger internally generated revenues.

  The Centre also called for a review of trade policy to ensure that domestic productive capacity is supported, saying industries and agricultural producers with credible local capacity deserve calibrated protection against unfair import competition, while producers should retain competitive access to critical inputs not adequately available locally.

  In a statement by its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Muda Yusuf, on the economic reform scorecard presented by the Minister of Finance yesterday, he commended the minister for providing greater clarity on the fiscal and macroeconomic outcomes of the reforms and addressing important concerns in public discourse.

 He added that such transparency was critical to reform credibility, particularly welcoming the minister’s balanced acknowledgement of both the gains and adjustment costs of the reforms.

  According to Dr. Yusuf, the reforms have delivered macroeconomic gains, including stronger government revenues, a more stable FX market, improved external reserves, an expanded trade surplus and recovered investor confidence.

  He noted that real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth strengthened to 3.89 per cent in the first quarter of 2026, from 3.13 per cent in the corresponding quarter of 2025.

 He however, stressed that these gains should serve as foundations for investment and growth, noting that macroeconomic stability was a means rather than an end.

  “The real test is whether stability translates into higher productivity, stronger investment, more jobs, lower poverty and improved living standards,” he said.

  He also observed that the transmission remained incomplete, with purchasing power still under pressure, while businesses continue to contend with high energy, financing, logistics and regulatory costs. He therefore said the next phase of the reform programme must focus much more strongly on productivity, competitiveness and household welfare.

  On subnational governance, he said the reforms have expanded the fiscal space available to state governments through higher statutory allocations and in many cases, stronger internally generated revenues. He said the increased revenues must translate into a much larger development role for the states, with citizens demanding measurable outcomes in roads, healthcare, public transportation, education, agricultural infrastructure, security, power and enterprise support.

  “Higher revenues must produce a visible development and welfare dividend, rather than simply finance higher recurrent expenditure and prestige projects,” he said.

 Identifying the supply side as the next frontier of reforms, he said Nigeria’s major constraints are increasingly structural especially electricity, logistics, insecurity, agricultural productivity, infrastructure, regulatory costs and the cost of capital.

  He noted that the electricity sector contracted by 15.3 per cent in the first quarter of 2026, while manufacturing grew by 3.29 per cent and agriculture by 3.15 per cent. According to him, accelerating productive-sector growth would require a decisive reduction in these structural costs.

  He noted that industries and agricultural producers with credible local capacity deserved calibrated protection against unfair import competition, while producers should retain competitive access to critical inputs that were not adequately available locally.

  Also highlighting the prevailing high-interest-rate environment as a major challenge, he said that as inflation moderates, stronger fiscal-monetary coordination must create room for a gradual easing of financing costs without jeopardising macroeconomic stability.

 He urged the government to sustain the reforms while refining the strategy, warning that reversing the reforms would be profoundly damaging to the economy. He pointed out that a reversal would undermine investor confidence, weaken fiscal stability, destabilise FX and reintroduce distortions that the reforms were designed to correct.

  Such a reversal, he added, could trigger significant economic dislocations and erode the gains already achieved.

  He added that reform instruments should be continuously recalibrated in response to evidence, implementation experience and their impact on businesses and households.

 He said the next phase of reforms must move from stabilisation to productivity, from higher government revenues to better development outcomes and from improving macroeconomic indicators to tangible gains in jobs, incomes and living standards.