Tinubu’s Reforms Made Nigerians Poorer — Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s financial insurance policies, arguing that the devaluation of the naira and different reforms have deepened poverty in Nigeria.

Obasanjo made the remarks on Wednesday on the Financial Times Africa Summit 2026 in London, United Kingdom, the place he faulted the sharp depreciation of the naira and its affect on Nigerians’ residing requirements.

He argued that the forex’s lack of worth had considerably decreased residents’ buying energy, contributing to Nigeria’s place because the nation with the most important variety of folks residing in excessive poverty.

“We do not live in isolation as a country. We interact with the rest of the world. And overnight, you devalue the currency by 300 per cent. The naira went from N500 to a dollar to N1,500 to a dollar,” he mentioned.

According to the previous president, the depreciation had considerably weakened Nigerians’ financial standing.

“What that meant was that every Nigerian is made poor by 300 per cent. That made Nigeria become the poverty capital of the world, which means Nigeria has the largest number of poor people in the world,” he added.

Obasanjo questioned the coverage’s advantages, insisting that its penalties for Nigerians couldn’t be thought-about beneficial.

“You cannot say to me that that is good for Nigeria. You cannot say to me that that is good for us in any sense,” he mentioned.

Tinubu launched main financial reforms shortly after assuming workplace in May 2023, starting with the removing of the petrol subsidy, which triggered will increase in gasoline costs and transportation prices.

The following month, his administration reformed the overseas trade market to permit the naira to commerce extra freely, successfully ending the earlier a number of exchange-rate regime.

The authorities launched the measures to deal with distortions within the overseas trade market, enhance transparency, entice overseas funding and strengthen the economic system.

However, the reforms have been accompanied by a steep decline within the naira’s worth and rising inflation, which elevated the price of imported items and positioned extra monetary strain on households and companies.

The ensuing will increase in meals costs, transportation fares and different important bills have continued to erode Nigerians’ buying energy, leaving many struggling to fulfill their fundamental wants.