Nigeria borrows to build, not to bridge fiscal gaps, Tinubu says

President Bola Tinubu says Nigeria is redirecting borrowing toward infrastructure to support growth, create jobs and help achieve the goal of a $1 trillion economy by 2030. He credited reforms to fuel subsidies, the exchange rate and taxation with improving public finances, citing 4.43% GDP growth in the second quarter of 2026 and inflation of 14.63% in September. Tinubu listed priority projects including the Lagos-Calabar and Sokoto-Badagry highways, and said Lot 2 of the Lagos-Calabar highway was more than 80% complete in August 2026. He also noted that public debt stood at 35.75% of GDP in the second quarter and debt servicing consumed about 65% of revenue in the first half of the year.