….announces resumption of weekly ministerial briefing
By Haruna Salami & Joy Baba-Yesufu
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has reaffirmed the commitment of the President Bola Tinubu administration’s to driving economic growth social and infrastructural development, emphasizing the significant progress achieved over the past 19 months.
The minister stated this Tuesday at the resumed Ministerial Press Briefing and the first edition in 2025, highlighting the government’s reforms and achievements adding that President Tinubu remains dedicated to engaging with Nigerians and ensuring transparency in governance.
Idris said that the Ministerial Press Briefing series, launched in 2024 had 25 ministers participated in these briefings, which provided a platform for federal ministers to present their scorecards to Nigerians and the global community.
He emphasized that these sessions help clarify government policies, counter misinformation, and provide insights into ongoing reforms, adding that in the lead-up to the administration’s second anniversary, ministers will continue to provide updates on a weekly basis.
Some of the highlights of the achievements of the Tinubu’s administration, according to Idris include fuel subsidy removal, which he said has “saved hundreds of billions of naira annually”.
“Foreign Exchange Stability: The introduction of the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS) has improved forex transparency, cleared backlogs, and boosted investor confidence. The Naira recently hit an eight-month high.
“Stock Market Growth: The NGX All-Share Index grew by 37.65% in 2024, making it one of the world’s best-performing stock markets.
“Oil and Gas Investments: Nigeria attracted over $5 billion in oil and gas investment commitments in 2024, solidifying its position as Africa’s most attractive energy market”.
On local government autonomy, Idris said a supreme court ruling in 2024 granted local governments greater financial autonomy, with an inter-ministerial committee overseeing its implementation.
On Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Idris said this Programme is very dear to President Tinubu which ensures that no Nigerian student is denied access to education on account that the parents or guardians have no money, adding that NELFUND has disbursed N32.8 billion to 169,000 students for school fees and living expenses.
On regional development, said new development commissions have been established for the North-Central, South-East, and North-West, alongside two new federal universities in Ogoniland and Delta State.
The Minister highlighted Healthcare Investments: The World Bank’s $1.07 billion HOPE program aims to improve medical services, while targeted subsidies now provide cancer patients with up to N400,000 in treatment support.
Passport reforms Idris noted that Over 200,000 international passport backlogs were cleared within three weeks in 2024, improving government service delivery.
He said compressed natural gas (CNG) expansion saw over $450 million invested in the CNG sector, increasing conversion centers from 7 in 2023 to over 150 in 2025.
Infrastructure wise, Idris noted that Nigeria has become a “vast construction site” under President Tinubu, with the government approving over N2.5 trillion for road projects, including: N1.3 trillion for additional sections of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
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