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Nigerian President Bola Tinubu defended the West African nation’s decision to stop subsidizing fuel. The move is already adding to economic hardships by pushing up prices for transportation and commodities
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu defended the West African nation’s decision to stop subsidizing fuel. The move is already adding to economic hardships by pushing up prices for transportation and commodities.
The money saved by ending the decades-long subsidy last week will help the government’s efforts to fight poverty and its initiatives, Tinubu explained. He explained to people to show patience even though hardship is biting harder on millions of citizens.
The governors supported the subsidy removal and promised to work together in implementing it. Though Nigeria is an oil-producing nation, it depends on imported refined petroleum products and the government has been subsidizing the cost for decades.
But with oil revenues dwindling amid chronic theft and decreasing foreign investment, the government said the fuel subsidies are no longer economically sustainable. It budgeted 4.4 trillion naira ($9.5 billion) for the subsidies in 2022, far more than for education, health care, and infrastructure combined.
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Analysts, however, faulted the government’s decision to withdraw the subsidy without incentives in place, especially at a time when many Nigerians already struggle to cope with record-high unemployment and poverty. Inflation is at an 18-year high. Unions have threatened strike in protest of the subsidy decision.
Nigeria’s states have begun to adopt various measures seeking to assist citizens, especially workers commuting to work daily. Edo and Kwara states this week cut the work week from five days to three. Other states said Wednesday they are considering such measures as increasing the minimum wage of 30,000 naira (US$65).
