FCT Minister Wike Promises to Complete 10 Abuja Projects Before 2027 Elections

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has assured all that at least 10 major road and infrastructure projects in Abuja will be completed and ready for inauguration before the 2027 general elections.
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Wike gave the assurance on Wednesday while inspecting the ongoing Tungan Madaki-Zuba Road and Nile University-RR3 Road projects in the Federal Capital Territory.

According to a statement issued by the minister’s Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, the minister said the inspection was aimed at assessing the progress of projects inaugurated during the FCT Administration’s third anniversary and determining whether the contractors would meet their delivery commitments ahead of the 2027 elections.

At the Tungan Madaki-Zuba Road project, Wike disclosed that five of the six box culverts had been completed, describing the pace of work as commendable.

He said the contractor, China Geo-Engineering Corporation, had assured the administration that the project would be completed and handed over by December.

“They have the capacity. I mean, they are not a new company. They have the capacity, they have the equipment. What’s important is if you have the equipment, and they have the equipment as part of capacity. So, they’ve been tested before now, so I have so much confidence in them,” Wike said.

The minister commended the contractor for its commitment to the project, noting that the company had demonstrated the capacity and willingness to contribute to the development of the FCT.

He, however, disclosed that the projects were capital-intensive and that some contractors had not received up to 30 per cent mobilisation despite continuing with the work.

The minister said the administration was working towards having 10 major projects completed and ready for commissioning before the 2027 elections.

“We are also visiting some other two projects tomorrow, believing that by the end of the year, we would have had up to 10 projects, as promised, lined up for commissioning before the general election,” he said.

The statement also reiterated that the FCT Administration had intensified efforts to tackle flooding through the removal of structures obstructing waterways across Abuja.

It stated that the FCT minister said the demolition exercise, which commenced in Maitama on Tuesday, would be extended to other parts of the capital where waterways had been blocked by structures.

“We’ve just started somewhere. After that, we will move to another area. We are not going to end just with what we started yesterday,” Wike said.

Wike

The minister further disclosed that the Director of Development Control was being queried over approvals allegedly granted to car dealers to operate on designated green areas.

He directed the immediate removal of car dealerships operating on such spaces, stressing that green areas must be preserved for recreational and environmental purposes.
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Subsidy removal, FX Reforms Yielded N15.8tn in 30 Months, Says Minister of Finance Taiwo Oyedele

The Federal Government said on Wednesday that the removal of petrol subsidy and the unification of the foreign exchange market generated N15.8tn in additional resources for the Federation between June 2023 and December 2025, with states and local governments receiving the larger share of the amount.
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The government, however, acknowledged that the subsidy savings did not appear in the Federation Account as a separate line item, explaining that the gains from the reforms manifested instead through increased revenue collections arising from changes in the exchange rate and the removal of subsidy-related distortions.

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed this at a media conference on Nigeria’s reform scorecard, titled, “The Benefits, Costs and Harm Prevented.”

The disclosure provides a fresh government explanation to a question that has persisted since President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of petrol subsidy in May 2023: where did the savings go?

According to Oyedele, the N15.8tn was not paid into the Federation Account under a heading described as “subsidy savings.”

Instead, he said the combined effect of the petrol subsidy removal and foreign exchange reforms increased the naira value of revenues accruing to the Federation.

“Between June 2023 and December 2025, subsidy savings mobilised a sum of N15.8tn in resources for the Federation,” Oyedele said.

“So, the subsidy savings showed up in the form of higher collection by Customs because, for every one dollar of import duty before, at N460, it became one dollar at N1,004, N1,003, N1,005.

“The NRS, Petroleum Profit Tax that it collected before, same dollar, higher amount in naira. So, the savings showed up in the Federation accounts by way of higher revenue collections as a result of the reforms.”

Taiwo Oyedele

The minister said the additional fiscal resources were not generated by the petrol subsidy removal alone, arguing that the foreign exchange reforms also ended what he described as an implicit subsidy that had created opportunities for rent-seeking.

He said, “Not just the subsidy removal, but also the exchange rate flotation, because we were subsidising the exchange rate. And that subsidy was not going to the ordinary person or manufacturers. It was going to rent-seekers.”
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Information Minister: Fuel Subsidy Reform has Created Fiscal Space, Averted Deeper Economic Crisis

The Honourable Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has said the economic reforms undertaken by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu are strengthening Nigeria’s fiscal position, improving economic stability and creating the resources required to invest in infrastructure, security, human capital and social protection.
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The Minister stated this on Wednesday in Abuja at a press conference convened to present the Federal Government’s “Nigeria’s Reform Scorecard: The Benefits, Costs and Harms Prevented,” providing Nigerians with detailed information on the resources generated through the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of the foreign exchange market, as well as the broader impact of the reforms on the economy.

Idris said the decision to remove the fuel subsidy was one of the most significant and difficult economic reforms undertaken by the Tinubu Administration, acknowledging that it had imposed real costs and adjustments on households, businesses and communities.

He, however, stressed that the reforms were necessary to redirect resources previously committed to an unsustainable subsidy regime towards investments capable of delivering greater and more sustainable value to Nigerians.

“Citizens have a right to know what resources have been freed up, what these resources mean for the Federation, and how the benefits of reform are being translated into tangible improvements in their lives,” the Minister said.

He described the press conference as an important demonstration of the Administration’s commitment to transparency and accountability, stressing that government’s responsibility goes beyond announcing policies to explaining their implications, accounting for their outcomes and demonstrating how difficult decisions are laying the foundations for a stronger and more sustainable economy.

Idris commended the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Taiwo Oyedele, and the economic management team for presenting the reform scorecard and providing Nigerians with the facts, figures and methodology underpinning the assessment.

Presenting the scorecard, the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Taiwo Oyedele, said the purpose of the exercise was not to declare victory but to provide an honest account of the costs, benefits and harms prevented by the reforms.

He disclosed that between June 2023 and December 2025, subsidy savings mobilised ₦15.8 trillion for the Federation, with ₦5.4 trillion accruing to the Federal Government and ₦10.4 trillion shared among states and local governments.

He added that the Federal Government generated ₦3.1 trillion in incremental independent revenue and ₦11.9 trillion in incremental borrowing, bringing total incremental Federal Government resources to ₦20.4 trillion, while incremental expenditure stood at ₦30.64 trillion.

“We are not here to pretend these reforms were painless. We are here to show you, honestly and with the numbers, what they cost, the benefits they delivered, and the harm they prevented,” Oyedele said.

The Finance Minister said the reforms had contributed to improvements in key macroeconomic indicators, including headline inflation, foreign reserves, market capitalisation and real GDP growth.

He noted that headline inflation had eased to 15.91 per cent as of June 2026, gross foreign reserves stood at $52.5 billion, while real GDP growth had strengthened to 3.89 per cent.

Oyedele also pointed to Nigeria’s improved standing in the international financial system, including a sovereign credit rating upgrade by S&P Global and the country’s exit from international anti-money laundering deficiency lists.

He stressed, however, that the reform process remained a work in progress, particularly in the areas of household welfare and poverty reduction, noting that the next phase of the Government’s economic programme would focus increasingly on translating macroeconomic gains into tangible improvements in the lives of ordinary Nigerians.

In his remarks, the Honourable Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, provided further context on the rationale for the reforms, noting that President Tinubu inherited an economy with one of the world’s lowest revenue-to-GDP ratios and, consequently, limited fiscal capacity relative to Nigeria’s population and developmental needs.

Bagudu said the Administration therefore had to make bold and difficult choices to address fiscal leakages, restore confidence in the economy and create greater room for investment in security, infrastructure, human capital development and grassroots development.

He said President Tinubu chose to confront the economic realities he inherited rather than apportion blame, drawing lessons from international experience in pursuing the difficult reforms required to place the Nigerian economy on a more sustainable footing.

The Budget and Economic Planning Minister said the reforms had also been accompanied by interventions to cushion their effects on vulnerable Nigerians, stressing that increased revenues would provide government with greater capacity to discharge its constitutional and developmental responsibilities.

He noted that resources generated and mobilised through the reforms were being invested in projects and programmes across the six geopolitical zones, adding that improved connectivity, security, infrastructure and economic opportunities would ultimately benefit Nigerians across the Federation.

Idris reaffirmed the Tinubu Administration’s commitment to continuing open engagement with Nigerians on the progress of the reforms, including their challenges and outcomes, while ensuring that the gains from improved fiscal stability translate into better living conditions, greater economic opportunities and improved public services for citizens.

Information Minister

The press conference was attended by the Honourable Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite; Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr. Shamseldeen Babatunde Ogunjimi; Statistician-General of the Federation, Prince Semiu Adeyemi Adeniran; Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Finance, Mr. Raymond Omachi; Permanent Secretary, Policy Support and Special Duties, Mr. Sanusi Dajuma; Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Dr. Mrs. Deborah Odoh; Executive Chairman, Nigeria Revenue Service, Dr. Zacch Adedeji; Director-General, Debt Management Office, Mrs. Patience Oniha; Director-General, Budget, Mr. Yakubu Tanimu Kurfi; Director-General, National Orientation Agency, Mallam Lanre Onilu; and other senior government officials and distinguished dignitaries.

Rabiu Ibrahim, MNIPR
Special Assistant (Media) to the Honourable Minister of Information and National Orientation

Wednesday, 19 August 2026
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