The Central Bank of Nigeria has guaranteed foreign investors that the government will persist in promoting reforms and creating avenues for sustainable investment and development.
Yemi Cardoso, the CBN governor, provided this assurance on Wednesday in Washington while speaking to investors at the Nigeria Investors Forum, which was hosted alongside the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank.He stated that the country’s foreign reserves had increased to $43.4 billion, the highest amount in five years.
Mr. Cardoso guaranteed the investors that the government would persist in implementing reforms and creating avenues for sustainable investment and development.
The CBN and the Ministry of Finance have closely collaborated to guarantee consistency, stability, and transparency for investors. Nigeria’s priorities are evident: enhancing our foundational structures, pursuing reforms, and creating avenues for enduring investment and development.
“We are motivated by the advancements achieved to date and continue to believe that the current reforms are establishing a more robust basis for a more resilient economy,” he stated.
Mohammed Abdullahi, the CBN deputy governor in charge of economic policy, stated that the government’s set of reforms has resulted in a notable enhancement in foreign exchange inflows.
Mr. Abdullahi stated that the monthly turnover in the forex market increased by 56.4 percent to 8.6 billion dollars in 2025, up from 5.5 billion dollars in 2024
“In the past two years, we have concentrated heavily on boosting FX inflow into the economy, and we have observed a notable increase.” The average net flows from January 2023 to July have increased twofold.
“FX availability at the official window has notably enhanced and has been influenced by order-driven quotations, numerous reforms concerning remittances, and all the other factors mentioned,” he stated.
He stated that these encompass the resolution of backlogs and unresolved commitments.
“Capital flows, which plummeted by more than 75 percent during the 2019 to 2020 timeframe, have greatly recovered and thus bolstered our external position.” Mr. Abdullahi stated, “Our financial markets have become deeper, more functional, and significantly more robust and transparent.”
He indicated that the CBN functioned as a net supplier by slightly under one percent of market turnover.
“We are, in fact, a net purchaser in the market.” In the past two years, we have been strengthening external buffers to enhance resilience against shocks. As of October, our gross reserves reached a five-year peak of $43.4 billion, sufficient to finance 11 months of imports.
“We have intentionally enhanced both the quality and quantity of our net FX reserves.” “From 2024 to 2025, we returned nearly $13 billion to local and global banks in a manner that facilitates the natural expansion of our reserves,” he stated.
Sanyade Okoli, the president’s special adviser on finance and economy, stated that the government is dedicated to reaching seven percent economic growth during 2027 and 2028.
Mr. Okoli stated that the expansion would result from diversification and investment in infrastructure.
“Our goal is seven percent by the year 2027 to 2028.” A week later, when the IMF raised its 2025 forecast, we predict a four percent growth, increasing to about five percent the following year. That four percent is already the highest, with the second quarter demonstrating a growth of 4.3 percent.”
We understand the necessity of diversifying the economy, and we are witnessing progress.” In the second quarter, 13 percent of sectors expanded by over seven percent. To attain seven percent GDP growth, it is necessary to have several sectors expanding at or above that rate.
“In the first quarter, nine sectors experienced growth exceeding seven percent; in the second quarter, this number rose to 13.” Our reliance on oil for overall exports has decreased to approximately 57.5 percent in the first half of this year, in comparison to last year. “According to Mr. Okoli, oil currently represents around four percent of GDP, a decrease from eight percent in 2021.”
