Nigeria must achieve an annual economic growth rate of at least 7 per cent to meaningfully improve the lives of its poorest and most vulnerable citizens, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has stated.
He delivered this message at a high-level policy dialogue on local government fiscal autonomy held in Abuja on Tuesday, an event convened by Agora Policy in collaboration with the Centre for Fiscal Transparency and Integrity Watch (CeFTiP), TheCable, and the MacArthur Foundation.
The dialogue brought together senior policymakers, civil society leaders, and development stakeholders to consider how fiscal autonomy for local governments can contribute to inclusive growth and effective service delivery across the nation.
Mr Edun stated that the administration of President Bola Tinubu has already laid the groundwork for economic stabilization and long-term resilience through bold early reforms. He explained that the initial actions of the administration addressed major macroeconomic imbalances, including distortions in pricing and structural bottlenecks that previously hindered growth and investment.
“We have made the groundwork for stimulating economic resilience and macroeconomic stability,” Edun said, adding that “The first phase was removing major macroeconomic disruptions in the form of food pricing, employment growth, market pricing, and employment change.”
He further stated that the government is now transitioning into the second phase of its economic reform agenda, with a focus on stabilizing key indicators, controlling inflation, narrowing fiscal deficits, and boosting revenue.
The Minister reiterated the necessity of substantial growth, asserting that “To really help the poorest and most vulnerable, we need to be doing around 7 percent per annum.”
Discussing the broader implications of the recent Supreme Court judgment mandating direct funding to democratically elected local governments, Edun described it as a transformative development within Nigeria’s governance structure.
He explained that local government autonomy, when properly implemented, possesses the potential to accelerate development at the grassroots by bringing decision-making and resource control closer to the populace. He noted that “It is the collaboration, professional determination, and willingness of all to achieve success that will be paramount in ensuring that we achieve what those justices of the Supreme Court have laid down for us.”
Furthermore, he revealed that the federal government is actively pursuing several initiatives aimed at bolstering local governance capacity. These include a national nutrition programme designed to target all 774 local government areas and the 774 Local Government Connectivity Project, which seeks to improve digital infrastructure.
Edun elaborated that “The construction of critical digital technology to increase connectivity has significantly improved access to markets—both domestic and international—access to education, access to health services, and thereby fostering inclusive economic growth.”
From the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC), Executive Chairman Victor Muruako urged local governments to approach their newfound financial independence with a strong commitment to fiscal discipline and transparency. “I passionately urge all local governments in Nigeria to preface the implementation of their autonomy with clear commitments to fiscal transparency, accountability, and prudence,” Muruako stated.
He advised caution regarding borrowing, despite the opportunity autonomy provides for local governments to engage directly with financial institutions for development financing. He counseled that borrowing should be carefully managed and strictly aligned with the Fiscal Responsibility Act to ensure sustainable fiscal management.
Muruako, drawing on his past experience as a local council chairman and leadership roles in the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), stressed that the primary objective of autonomy is not institutional independence in itself, but rather improved service delivery and human development at the community level.
Ojobo Ode Atuluku, Chair of Agora Policy, contributed to the dialogue by calling for Nigeria to look beyond mere legal rulings and undertake deeper institutional reforms necessary to revitalize local governance.
She argued that “If we are truly committed to restoring the promise of local democracy, then we must pursue a roots-and-branch reform of our local governance system.”
According to Atuluku, such comprehensive reform must include dismantling entrenched systems of political patronage, overhauling local electoral processes, and transforming local councils into responsive and accountable bodies that genuinely reflect citizens’ needs.
She announced that Agora Policy is preparing to launch the Local Governance Accountability (LGA) Portal, an online tool designed to track statutory allocations from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), identify elected officials at the local level, and provide historical profiles of all local governments in Nigeria since 1999.
This portal, she confirmed, “will be a powerful tool for a genuine local governance systems development,” adding that the Abuja event forms part of an ongoing initiative to enhance the transparency and impact of local government institutions.