Economy
CISLAC, other 38 CSOs call on FG to obey Supreme Court
Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, CISLAC, and other 38 Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, has called on the Federal Government to obey Supreme Court pronouncement on Naira swap policy. The leaders of the CSOs made the call at a press conference titled ‘State of the Nation’ which Auwal Ibrahim Rafsanjani, Jaye Gaskia, and others read an address, which pointed out the deepening hardship Nigerians are going through with no solution to the Naira crisis that has engulfed the nation. They also condemned crackdown of protesters who are expressing their pain over scarcity of Naira, as it infringes on their rights as citizens who are out to make their government know the hardship they are passing through.
However, the CSOs said citizens who embark on acts of destroying private and public property are taking laws into their hands and is unacceptable. The CSOs said “the exercise was unleashed at a time that Nigerian citizens are reeling from the effects of contrived fuel scarcity, insecurity of endemic proportions, galloping inflation and attendant stress on conditions and cost of living. It needs to emphasised that the Naira redesign exercise has exposed the poor thinking in implementation, resulting in avoidable scarcity of the redesigned denominations of the currency – N200, N500 and N1,000 notes; opportunistic hoarding and diversions by banks; profiteering practices by PoS operators, filling stations and bank officials; denial to citizens of access to their own funds to meet their basic needs of food and health; and, a potential threat to inclusive and participatory democracy despite the registration of large number of voters across Nigeria. The events of the last few weeks appear as orchestrated political template aimed at undermining the very foundation of our national existence.
“There are disturbing signals from the posture of the Federal Government seem to suggest that Nigeria has a long way to go to combat the destructive culture of impunity. It is shocking that despite the provision of separation of powers in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the Federal Government of Nigeria has continued to treat the opinions of the legislature in various resolutions of national importance with disdain. To make matters worse, the Federal Government has outright refused to, and even countermand the pronouncement of the Supreme Court on the deadline for the status of the old denominations of the Naira as legal tender. Although the purveyors of the Naira redesign policy and its precipitate implementation continue to point to the intended aim of curbing vote buying in the upcoming general elections, it is quite obvious from unfolding events in the country that the primary outcome of the implementation of the exercise is imposing avoidable and unnecessary hardships on the citizens across the country.
“The consequence of this is that the over-whelming majority of ordinary citizens, have now found themselves in a position of fiscal paralysis, with no access to cash, and without the ability to undertake unhindered transactions through digital platforms. The end result has been that small and medium businesses, in the informal sector, in particular, have been faced with unquantifiable losses, epileptic operations, sudden shut downs or have ground to a halt. Even large businesses in the formal sector, have not escaped the debilitating impact of the scarcity of cash, and the inability to undertake unhindered digital transactions. To safeguard our democracy, and protect the working and living conditions of our people, we make the following demands: The Federal Government must quickly put in place all measures to ensure that the suffering of the Nigerian people caused by the poor thinking and inefficiencies in the implementation of the Naira redesign exercise are eliminated. Citizens and businesses must have unfettered access to their money – access to cash, ability to undertake unhindered transactions through both non-digital and digital platforms – without further stress to meet their obligations to their families/dependents and businesses to enable them to live with less stress in an environment where citizens are reeling from the effects of contrived fuel scarcity, insecurity of endemic proportions and galloping inflation.
“The principle of separation of powers must be respected and the FG should respect and uphold the pronouncement of the Supreme Court on the old denominations of the Naira that it marked to be phased out as legal tender. It must also, in particular, make the lower denominations of the Naira available for the operations and convenience of citizens in the informal sector and small business operators who, by acts of omission of the FGN and CBN, have become the primary victims of the assumed well-intended Naira redesign exercise. The legitimate anger and concerns of ordinary citizens as the major victims of the ill-prepared and rushed implementation of the anti-people policy, must be respected; their rights to protest must be protected, and their legitimate anger must not be met with repression. In this respect, we condemn the repression of protests, call for its cessation, and for the prosecution of security personnel who have brutalised, shot at, and or harassed citizens in the course of the unfolding protests. However, the right to peaceful assembly and protest should not be an excuse for the destruction of public or private property or the abuse of the fundamental rights of other citizens by protesters.
“We call on the executive branch of government, in particular the presidency and the CBN, to retrace their steps and immediately abide with the extant ruling and pronouncement of the Supreme Court on this matter. We call on the Presidency to uphold the rule of law, and not to take any steps that will further undermine the system of separation of powers between the branches of government. In this respect, we call for anyone who is implicated in disobeying the ruling of the Supreme Court to face appropriate consequences in accordance with our constitution.”
The Arab Africa Trade Bridges (AATB) Program and the Federal Republic of Nigeria formalized a partnership with the signing of the AATB Membership Agreement, officially welcoming Nigeria as the Program’s newest member country. The signing ceremony took place in Abuja on the sidelines of the 5th AATB Board of Governors Meeting, hosted by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The Membership Agreement was signed by Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, the CEO of the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) and AATB Program Secretary General, and H.E. Mr. Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Agreement will provide a strategic and operational framework to support Nigeria’s efforts in trade competitiveness, promote export diversification, strengthen priority value chains, and advance capacity-building efforts in line with national development priorities. Areas of collaboration will include trade promotion, agribusiness modernization, SME development, businessmen missions, trade facilitation, logistics efficiency, and digital trade readiness.
The Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, called for deeper trade collaboration between African and Arab nations, stressing the importance of value-added Agribusiness and industrial partnerships for regional growth. Speaking in Abuja at the Agribusiness Matchmaking Forum ahead of the AATB Board of Governors Meeting, the Minister said the shifting global economy makes it essential for African and Arab nations to rely more on regional cooperation, investment and shared markets.
He highlighted projections showing Arab-Africa trade could grow by more than US$37 billion in the next three years and urged partners to prioritize value addition rather than raw commodity exports. He noted that Nigeria’s growing industrial base and upcoming National Single Window reforms will support efficiency, investment and private-sector expansion.
“This is a moment to turn opportunity into action”, he said. “By working together, we can build stronger value chains, create jobs and support prosperity across our regions”, Edun emphasized. “As African and Arab nations embark on this journey of deeper trade collaboration, the potential for growth and development is vast. With a shared vision and commitment to value-added partnerships, we can unlock new opportunities, drive economic growth, and create a brighter future for our people.”
Speaking during the event, Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, Chief Executive Officer of ITFC and Secretary General of the AATB Program, stated: “We are pleased to welcome Nigeria to be part of the AATB Program. Nigeria stands as one of Africa’s most dynamic and resilient economies in Africa, with a rapidly expanding private sector and strong potential across agribusiness, energy, manufacturing, and digital industries. Through this Membership Agreement, we look forward to collaborating closely with Nigerian institutions to strengthen value chains, expand regional market access, enhance trade finance and investment opportunities, and support the country’s development priorities.”
The signing of this Agreement underscores AATB’s continued engagement with African countries and its evolving portfolio of programs supporting trade and investment. In recent years, AATB has worked on initiatives across agribusiness, textiles, logistics, digital trade, export readiness under the AfCFTA framework, and other regional initiatives such as the Common African Agro-Parks (CAAPs) Programme.
With Nigeria’s accession, the AATB Program extends it’s presence in the region and adds a key partner working toward advancing trade-led development and fostering inclusive economic growth.
Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), a key fiscal document that outlines Nigeria’s revenue expectations, macroeconomic assumptions, and spending priorities for the next three years. The approval followed Wednesday’s FEC meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja. The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu made this known after the meeting.
The Minister said the Federal Government is projecting a total revenue inflow of N34.33 trillion in 2026, including N4.98 trillion expected from government-owned enterprises. Bagudu said that the projected revenue is N6.55 trillion lower than earlier estimates, adding that federal allocations are expected to drop by about N9.4 trillion, representing a 16% decline compared to the 2025 budget.
He said that statutory transfers are expected to amount to about N3 trillion within the same fiscal year. On macroeconomic assumptions, FEC adopted an oil production benchmark of 2.6 million barrels per day (mbpd) for 2026, although a more conservative 1.8 mbpd will be used for budgeting purposes. An oil price benchmark of $64 per barrel and an exchange rate of N1,512 per dollar were also approved.
Bagudu said the exchange rate assumption reflects projections tied to economic and political developments ahead of the 2027 general elections. He said the exchange rate assumption took into account the fiscal outlook ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The minister said that all the parameters were based on macroeconomic analysis by the Budget Office and other relevant agencies. Bagudu said FEC also reviewed comments from cabinet members before approving the Medium-Term Fiscal Expenditure Ceiling (MFTEC), which sets expenditure limits. Earlier, the Senate approved the external borrowing plan of $21.5 billion presented by President Tinubu for consideration The loans, according to the Senate, were part of the MTEF and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) for the 2025 budget.
The spot rate on Nigerian Treasury bills has been increased by 146 basis points by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) following tight subscription levels at the main auction on Wednesday. The spot rate on Treasury bills with one-year maturity has now surpassed Nigeria’s 16.05% inflation by 145 basis points following a recent decision to keep the policy rate at 27%.
The Apex Bank came to the primary market with N700 billion Treasury bills offer size across standard tenors, including 91-day, 182-day and 364 day maturities. Details from the auction results showed that demand settled slightly above the total offers as investors began to seek higher returns on naira assets despite disinflation.
Total subscription came in at about N775 billion versus N700 billion offers floated at the main auction. The results showed rising appetite for duration as investors parked about 90% of their bids on Nigerian Treasury bills with 364 days maturity. The CBN opened N100 billion worth of 91 days bills for subscription, but the offer received underwhelming bids totalling N44.17 billion.
The CBN allotted N42.80 billion for the short-term instrument at the spot rate of 15.30%, the same as the previous auction. Total demand for 182 days Nigerian Treasury bills settled at N33.38 billion as against N150 billion that the authority pushed out for subscription. The CBN raised N30.36 billion from 182 days bills allotted to investors at the spot rate of 15.50%, the same as the previous auction.
Investors staked N697.29 billion on N450 billion in 364-day Treasury bills that was offered for subscription. The CBN raised N636.46 billion from the longest tenor at the spot rate of 17.50%, up from 16.04% at the previous auction.
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