Nigeria cannot afford to waste reform momentum — NESG

Nigeria must transition beyond economic stabilization to ensure reforms yield productive investment, increased productivity, employment, and improved incomes, according to the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG). CEO Tayo Adeloju emphasized that the country now faces a critical juncture where growth must generate tangible benefits for businesses, workers, and households.

While the NESG highlighted that recent reforms—like subsidy elimination, exchange-rate unification, fiscal restructuring, and bank recapitalization—have restored macroeconomic stability and confidence, Adeloju stressed that stability alone is insufficient. He argued that the focus should now shift from stabilizing the economy to converting that stability into transformation.

The NESG's 32nd Economic Summit, scheduled for October 26-27 in Abuja, aims to explore how reforms translate into investment, productivity, jobs, and shared prosperity. Adeloju outlined five key priority areas—Work Nigeria, Produce Nigeria, Invest Nigeria, Scale Nigeria, and Secure Nigeria—each targeting specific challenges such as education-skills gaps, agricultural development, investor confidence, state-led production, and insecurity.

The summit will convene stakeholders including government, business leaders, labor unions, development partners, academia, and civil society to deliberate on Nigeria's economic challenges and propose solutions. The NESG CEO urged the media to focus not just on the summit's opening ceremony but to delve into the substantive discussions, evaluate the implementation of recommendations, and measure progress.