Progress on strengthening Nigeria’s banking system, combined with a revenue boost from a global oil price surge driven by the Iran war, is providing an economic filip to President Bola Tinubu ahead of presidential elections next year.
Nigerian officials will hope the upbeat message burnishes Tinubu’s credentials as a reformer at home as he begins a state visit to the UK as part of efforts to build a reputation as a statesman abroad.
Nigeria’s central bank governor announced this week that 32 banks — the vast majority of Nigeria’s lenders — have completed a recapitalization program aimed at helping them finance large infrastructure projects, expand credit to small businesses, and attract foreign investment. The program is tied to Tinubu’s flagship economic goal of tripling Nigeria’s GDP by 2030.
He has also been buffeted by rising oil prices, which in recent days have consistently topped $100 a barrel. S&P analyst Ravi Bhatia, speaking in London, said higher crude prices would likely offset increased fuel purchase costs.
Yet, Tinubu’s reelection bid is not without challenges: At least 23 people were killed this week in suspected Boko Haram suicide bombings in Maiduguri, one of the deadliest attacks in years on a city at the epicenter of the jihadist insurgency.