Tinubu puts living costs at center of next reform phase

President Bola Tinubu used Nigeria’s 66th Independence Day address on October 1 to argue that economic reforms had improved the country’s outlook and to make lowering living costs and expanding productive work the government’s next priority. His assessment of the gains was not independently established by the address, while other accounts of the anniversary highlighted persistent hardship and the uncertain effect of macroeconomic changes on households. Tinubu said the economy had grown by more than 4% in 2026, inflation had fallen from its peak and foreign reserves had been rebuilt. He described the reform period as having laid a foundation for prosperity and said the government would focus on reducing production and transport costs, supporting agriculture and industry, and creating jobs. He also acknowledged that many families still struggle to afford food, education and medical care. Separately, the National Bureau of Statistics reported real GDP growth of 4.43% year on year in the second quarter of 2026, compared with 3.89% in the first quarter. Those figures refer to different quarters and do not by themselves establish a broad improvement in household welfare.