The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has warned that reversing Nigeria’s ongoing economic reforms would undermine investor confidence, weaken fiscal stability and destabilise the foreign-exchange market. In an assessment of the Federal Government’s economic reform scorecard, the private-sector advocacy group urged authorities to sustain the reform trajectory while refining implementation to avoid reintroducing the distortions the policies were designed to correct.
According to Muda Yusuf, chief executive officer of CPPE, the reforms have delivered measurable macroeconomic gains. These include stronger government revenues, greater stability in the foreign-exchange market, improved external reserves, an expanded Trade surplus and a recovery in investor confidence. Real GDP growth strengthened to 3.89 percent in the first quarter of 2026, up from 3.13 percent in the corresponding quarter of 2025.
However, CPPE noted that gains in macroeconomic stability have yet to fully translate into improved welfare for households or lower operating costs for businesses. “Macroeconomic stability is a means, not an end,” the group said, stressing that the ultimate test of the reforms lies in their ability to deliver higher productivity, stronger investment, more jobs, lower poverty and improved living standards.
Purchasing power remains under pressure, while businesses continue to grapple with high energy, financing, logistics and regulatory costs. CPPE called for the next phase of reforms to focus more strongly on productivity and competitiveness, arguing that Nigeria’s structural constraints must now take centre stage.
The organisation identified electricity, logistics, insecurity, agricultural productivity, infrastructure, regulatory costs and the cost of capital as major structural bottlenecks requiring urgent attention. It pointed to a 15.3 percent contraction in the electricity sector in Q1 2026, even as manufacturing grew by 3.29 percent and agriculture expanded by 3.15 percent. Accelerating productive-sector growth, CPPE said, would require a decisive reduction in these structural costs.
On trade policy, the group urged the government to provide calibrated protection to industries and agricultural producers with credible local capacity against unfair import competition, while maintaining competitive access to critical inputs that cannot yet be adequately sourced locally. Regarding financing costs, CPPE said the prevailing high-interest-rate environment remains a major challenge. It argued that moderating inflation, alongside stronger fiscal-monetary coordination, should create room for a gradual easing of financing costs without jeopardising macroeconomic stability.
CPPE also raised concerns about the use of increased fiscal resources at the subnational level. Reforms have significantly expanded the fiscal space of state governments through higher statutory allocations and, in many cases, stronger internally generated revenues. The group said these additional resources should translate into visible improvements in roads, Healthcare, public transportation, education, agricultural infrastructure, security, power and enterprise support. “Higher revenues must produce a visible development and welfare dividend,” CPPE said, warning against allowing increased revenues to simply finance higher recurrent expenditure and prestige projects.
While rejecting any reversal of the reforms, CPPE stressed that the policy framework must remain flexible enough to respond to emerging economic realities. Reform instruments should be continuously recalibrated based on evidence, implementation experience and their impact on businesses and households. The organisation emphasised that Nigeria’s next reform phase must move decisively 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.
