Nigeria must post annual economic growth of between 10 and 12 per cent for the next decade to achieve its ambition of becoming a $1 trillion economy, the minister of state for finance, Doris Uzoka-Anite, has said.
Speaking on Wednesday at the 2026 annual general meeting of the Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) in Abuja, Uzoka-Anite described the target as bold but attainable if ongoing reforms are sustained.
Addressing the theme, “Actualising President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s $1 Trillion Economy Agenda,” she said Nigeria’s current gross domestic product stands at about $375 billion. Bridging the gap to $1 trillion, she noted, requires consistent double-digit growth over the next 10 years.
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“That is an ambitious target, and this administration is not shy about saying so,” she told finance journalists.
Uzoka-Anite said the government of Bola Ahmed Tinubu inherited what she called “structurally distorted” economic fundamentals in 2023. She cited annual fuel subsidy payments exceeding N5 trillion and a multiple exchange rate system that encouraged rent-seeking and weakened investor confidence.
According to her, two early policy decisions defined the administration’s reform path: the removal of the fuel subsidy and the unification of the foreign exchange market.
“Both decisions imposed short-term pain. Neither decision has been reversed. Today, those reforms are being vindicated by the data,” she said.
She pointed to a January 2026 update by S&P Global Ratings, which revised Nigeria’s outlook to positive while affirming its B-/B sovereign credit ratings. The agency, she said, cited measurable improvements in the country’s fiscal, monetary and external positions.
On public finance, the minister said the federal government has restructured its budget framework to separate investment expenditure from recurrent spending. The move, she explained, is designed to protect capital spending and improve long-term productivity.
Uzoka-Anite disclosed that the second phase of reforms is being driven by a joint initiative between the ministry of finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria. The programme, known as the disinflation and growth acceleration strategy (DGAS), is structured around nine pillars.
She said DGAS aims to deliver non-inflationary growth above 7 per cent by 2027, laying the groundwork for sustained expansion beyond that period.
A key concern, she noted, is Nigeria’s heavy reliance on imported inputs. About 70 per cent of raw materials used in domestic industrial production are sourced from abroad, leaving the economy exposed to exchange rate pressures and global supply shocks.
Uzoka-Anite referenced the Dangote Refinery as proof that domestic value addition can alter the country’s cost structure. By refining crude oil locally rather than exporting it and re-importing finished products, she said, Nigeria can retain value, create jobs and expand its tax base.
“Our goal under DGAS is to replicate that model across agriculture, mining, health and manufacturing,” she said, arguing that deeper local processing would generate employment, raise household incomes and strengthen fiscal revenues.
On trade integration, the minister confirmed that Nigeria has submitted its ECOWAS tariff offer to the African Continental Free Trade Area secretariat. The offer establishes zero duties on 90 per cent of goods traded within the continent.
She said the move positions Nigerian businesses to compete more effectively across African markets, while also attracting investment into export-oriented industries.
Uzoka-Anite, a medical doctor and financial analyst by training, previously served as minister of industry, trade and investment before assuming her current role in November 2024. She also held office as commissioner for finance and co-ordinator of the economy in Imo State.
For the administration, the $1 trillion ambition is more than a headline figure. It is a long-term benchmark tied to structural reform, industrial expansion and fiscal discipline. The next decade, she made clear, will determine whether the target remains aspirational or becomes reality.
