Nigerian Minister Bullish On Recovery

Nigeria's radical economic reforms are gaining traction and investors are beginning to re-engage, says the country's minister of state for finance Doris Uzoka-Anite.

Speaking on the sidelines of Standard Bank's African Markets Conference in Cape Town, Uzoka-Anite insisted that the economy is primed for growth after what some analysts described as President Bola Tinubu's 'shock therapy", which included devaluation of the naira and the withdrawal of extensive fuel subsidies.

"The president was hell bent on reform. People were worried about how this would work but everyone soon saw the president was not going to back down. The fiscal policy authorities followed his lead, and we all adjusted. Now we are all aligned, and it is moving forward," Uzoka-Anite said.

"We are in the second year of our reform process now and the economy has cooled off, inflation has cooled off and food prices have come down. We are heading for growth. Now everyone understands why we had to do the reform in the first place."

Investors watched with concern the initial impact of radical reforms instituted by Tinubu following his election, which included the withdrawal of fuel subsidies and liberalisation of the exchange rate.