Nigeria’s National Economic Council (NEC) has approved a 90-day economic action plan aimed at easing the cost of living, improving food affordability, harmonising taxes and accelerating projects expected to deliver direct benefits to citizens.
The decision was taken at NEC’s 161st meeting, chaired virtually by Vice President Kashim Shettima, following a presentation by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele.
The plan identifies five priority areas: food affordability, tax harmonisation, completion of high-impact projects, removal of investment bottlenecks and regulated household support.
The council also approved a national dashboard to track projects across the federation, with an emphasis on transparency, accountability and reporting on the use of funds recovered from the removal of the petrol subsidy.
Oyedele expressed optimism about the direction of the economy under President Bola Tinubu’s reform programme, identifying lower inflation and interest rates in the single digits by 2027 as key policy objectives.
He stressed the need for federal and state governments to coordinate implementation so that improvements in economic indicators translate into tangible benefits for households and businesses.
Shettima charges governors to deliver relief
Shettima urged state governors and relevant government institutions to ensure that economic reforms produce measurable improvements in transportation, healthcare, employment and household financial security.
He said the success of government policies should be judged by their impact on people’s daily lives rather than by announcements or reform commitments.
“The first dividend of prosperity should be the confidence to plan a life. Our task is to make such confidence less dependent on fortune,” the vice president said.
He called for stronger cooperation between federal and state authorities, arguing that their separate responsibilities should not obstruct the delivery of essential services.
“Our separate jurisdictions must serve a common public interest,” he said.
Shettima also challenged governors to bring local knowledge into national policymaking and establish clear responsibilities for implementing agreed measures.
“Each Governor carries knowledge that no federal document can supply,” he said.
The council’s 90-day plan is intended to accelerate action on pressing economic challenges, although the announcement did not specify a detailed public implementation timetable or individual targets for each priority area.
NEC moves to tackle transport costs
The council also considered measures to reduce transportation costs through the National Affordable CNG Transit Programme.
Following a presentation by Ismaeel Ahmed, chairman of the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas and Electric Vehicles, NEC resolved to establish a joint financing framework involving federal and state governments to accelerate the deployment of compressed natural gas (CNG) and electric vehicles.
The council directed that the programme should deliver lower fares and improved access to transportation rather than focus solely on increasing the number of vehicles deployed.
It also called for consultations with transport unions and operators to ensure that savings from alternative fuels are passed on to commuters.
A committee is expected to coordinate the financing arrangement, engage stakeholders and develop measures to make public transportation more affordable and sustainable.
“The cost of reaching a livelihood should never consume the livelihood itself,” Shettima said, stressing that affordability and accessibility should determine the programme’s success.
Tinubu seeks to unlock Nigeria’s gas capacity
Separately, President Tinubu reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to expanding the use of Nigeria’s gas resources to support electricity generation, industrial production, job creation and export earnings.
He spoke at the State House in Abuja while receiving Chief Leemon Ikpea, founder and chairman of Lee Engineering Group, following the company’s work on two compressor stations intended to enable the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS) to operate at its designed capacity of 2.3 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day.
Lee Engineering is handling the engineering, procurement and construction of two midline compressor stations in Edo State.
The project is expected to improve gas transportation to power plants and industries along the pipeline corridor and support supplies to neighbouring West African countries through the West African Gas Pipeline.
The pipeline’s designed capacity was increased from 1.1 billion to 2.3 billion standard cubic feet per day under the ELPS II expansion. The compressor stations are intended to raise operating pressure and support delivery at the expanded capacity.
Tinubu urged international oil companies operating in Nigeria to provide more opportunities for capable indigenous engineering and manufacturing firms.
He said the government’s Nigeria First policy should translate into more contracts for Nigerian businesses, greater use of locally manufactured equipment and increased employment for skilled workers.
The president also pointed to executive orders and directives introduced in 2024 on local content compliance, contracting costs and approval timelines as part of efforts to attract investment and expand opportunities for domestic companies.
Ikpea said Lee Engineering was manufacturing some components for the compressor stations at its fabrication yard in Warri, Delta State. He argued that investments in equipment, technology and skilled personnel had strengthened the ability of Nigerian firms to undertake complex engineering projects.
NEC reviews Ebola preparedness
At the meeting, NEC also received an update on the reported Ebola case in the Federal Capital Territory from the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Ali Pate.
Pate identified coordination, detection at points of entry, laboratory testing, supplies of essential medical kits and personal protective equipment, and effective public communication as critical elements of the national response.
He said 21 state governments had updated their Ebola preparedness and response plans and urged the remaining 15 states to accelerate their preparations.
The briefing added a public health dimension to the council’s deliberations, with state-level preparedness and coordination identified as important to containing potential transmission.
The decisions on cost-of-living relief, affordable transportation, gas infrastructure and public health preparedness reflect the breadth of NEC’s economic and governance agenda.
The key test will be whether the approved measures produce visible improvements in food prices, transport fares, investment, employment and access to essential services within the intended implementation period.
