Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has admitted that the administration’s economic reforms pushed more Nigerians into poverty.
He, however, insisted that the country has made “marked progress” since the reforms were introduced.
Bwala spoke during an interview on Channels Television, amid renewed debate over the impact of the administration’s removal of petrol subsidy and foreign exchange reforms.
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“Please let it be clear even to the opposition, the reason why you have this number of poor people and some of these doomsday analytics that people are giving is because we undertook a reform,” he said.
“There is no part of the world where you start a reform like that there will not be discomfort.
“More people went down to poverty, acknowledged, but since when the reform started to today, we have made marked progress which is what we have spent the last three years talking to Nigerians about”, he stated.
Bwala said the increase in poverty could not be considered separately from the economic restructuring undertaken by the administration.
“So, you cannot discount that even though there are quite a number of our population that are poor which we admit, but we have made progress so far,” he added.
The admission comes against the backdrop of continuing disagreement among economists, opposition politicians and the Federal Government over the consequences of the reforms.
The World Bank has acknowledged improvements in Nigeria’s macroeconomic position following the reforms, including stronger external balances, improved fiscal conditions and continued economic growth.
It has, however, also warned that the gains have not yet translated sufficiently into improved living standards for millions of Nigerians.
The bank estimated in 2025 that Nigeria’s poverty rate had risen substantially over the preceding years, although it noted that much of the increase occurred before the Tinubu administration came into office.
The International Monetary Fund has similarly recognised improvements in macroeconomic stability while warning that poverty and food insecurity remain significant challenges.
For many households, the removal of petrol subsidy and the depreciation of the naira translated into higher transportation, food, energy and other living costs.
Economists have consequently drawn a distinction between improved macroeconomic indicators and the immediate welfare of households.
Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Muda Yusuf, has argued that the reforms helped restore macroeconomic stability and address longstanding distortions.
He, however, said the ultimate test would be whether the gains translate into higher incomes, jobs, lower poverty and improved living standards.
Other analysts have similarly argued that the reforms may have corrected some structural problems while imposing substantial adjustment costs on households and businesses.
The Federal Government has maintained that the measures were unavoidable because of the fiscal and structural weaknesses it inherited in 2023.
President Tinubu has repeatedly argued that continuing the petrol subsidy would have left the government with fewer resources for infrastructure, social services and development.
The administration has also pointed to increased Federation Account revenues following the removal of the subsidy.
Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said the Federal Government and the subnational governments received increased revenues from subsidy savings between June 2023 and December 2025.
Oyedele, however, acknowledged that reducing poverty remained one of the administration’s major unfinished tasks.
The government has consequently highlighted its social intervention programmes, student loans, consumer credit initiatives, agricultural support and CNG transportation scheme as measures designed to cushion the impact of the reforms.
