Oyedele Explains Why Nigerians Are Poor, Disagrees With World Bank on Reforms

Nigeria's Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has defended the government's economic reforms. He said rising poverty after fuel subsidy removal was an unavoidable part of correcting long-standing fiscal distortions, not proof that the reforms failed.

Oyedele directly disagreed with the World Bank, which has argued that poverty levels rose despite the reforms. He spoke in a video clip shared by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.

What Oyedele Said

Oyedele said poverty went up because the reforms removed subsidies that had masked the true state of the economy. He argued that no one can remove a subsidy and expect people to become richer immediately.

He said: "The World Bank would say that poverty has gone up despite the reforms. And I said, yes, poverty has gone up because you cannot remove subsidy and people become richer."

Reforms as a Reset

Oyedele described the reform process as a necessary reset after years of what he called "fiscal illusions." He said the government had been deceiving itself through subsidies and other unsustainable measures.

He added: "The reform itself was a reset. We were living in fiscal illusions. So we needed to stop deceiving ourselves so the country can move forward."

The minister acknowledged that the policy changes reduced real household incomes in the short term and pushed more Nigerians below the poverty line. But he framed this as a transitional cost, not a policy failure.

Signs of Turnaround

Despite the initial hardship, Oyedele said recent data points to a recovery. He said Nigeria recorded close to 10% real per capita income growth in dollar terms in 2025, which he described as one of the strongest performances globally.

He said: "That makes Nigeria one of the fastest countries in lifting people out of poverty. We intend to sustain that."

The government's priority, he added, is to keep the reform programme going over the long term to support stronger growth and improve living standards.

GDP Data Supports the Argument

Earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics released GDP figures showing Nigeria's economy grew at its quickest pace in 10 years. Real GDP growth rose to 3.89% year-on-year in Q1 2026, from 3.13% in Q1 2025.

The growth was driven by the service sector, agriculture, and most key non-oil sectors of the economy. Oyedele's comments align with these numbers, which he cites as evidence that the reforms are beginning to work.

For Nigerian households, the immediate impact has been higher living costs and squeezed incomes. The government's argument is that this pain is temporary, and the improving growth figures justify staying the course.