Petrol importation reduced by 50% since subsidy removal - FG

The Federal Government claimed that petrol importation has reduced by 50% since President Bola Tinubu removed subsidy on the commodity.

During his inauguration speech on May 29, 2023, the President announced the end of the resource-gulping, controversial policy, claiming it was no longer sustainable for the government to pay subsidies on fuel.

The decision triggered an instant increase in petrol pump prices, which jumped from ₦185 to over ₦600 per litre.

However, if the claim of the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, is anything to go by, it seems the controversial move has started bearing fruit.

Speaking at the third edition of the ministerial press briefing series in Abuja on Wednesday, February 28, 2024, Idris disclosed that Nigeria had begun to reap the benefits of the reforms embarked upon by the Tinubu government.

He disclosed that Nigeria’s gross domestic product recorded a 3.46% growth in the fourth quarter of 2023, as against 2.54% in the preceding quarter of the same year.

The minister also stated that capital importation rose to 66% in the last quarter of 2023, 30% more than what was recorded in the third quarter.

“Petrol importation has been reduced by 50 per cent since the withdrawal of the fuel subsidy.

"The Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index crossed the 100,000 mark – its highest ever, mainly due to the pragmatic reforms initiated by the President, which inspired investor confidence in the Nigerian economy.

“It is also encouraging to state that oil production has risen from 1.22 million barrels per day in the second quarter of 2023 to 1.55 million barrels per day in the fourth quarter of 2023,” Idris reeled out.

To cater for unemployed graduates, the minister said Tinubu had given a directive for the design of a social Security Unemployment Programme.

“This is in addition to setting up a Social Consumer Credit Scheme to boost the purchasing power of Nigerians, as they make adjustments in view of the temporary economic hardship.

“As the government rejigs the National Social Investment Programme, the direct payments of N25,000 to 15 million households will resume immediately.

“The government is equally tackling insecurity headlong and more success stories are coming in on a daily basis. Without any doubt, we are winning the war against insecurity,” he added.

The briefing series was initiated to serve as a platform for public officials to update Nigerians on their achievements and challenges of governance.