BY EMMA PETER, ABUJA
Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, have met with the President of the World Bank Group, Ajay Banga, to discuss the country’s economic reforms and strategies for accelerating growth and attracting more investment.
According to a press statement signed by Efe Ovuakporie, Head of Media, Federal Ministry of Finance, the meeting formed part of the Federal Government’s broader engagement with international development partners to consolidate the gains of ongoing economic reforms and attract fresh investment into the country, with a focus on translating economic stability into productive investments, employment opportunities and improved living standards for Nigerians.
The meeting, held on Monday in Bangkok, Thailand, took place on the sidelines of the 2026 International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group Annual Meetings, where Oyedele is leading Nigeria’s delegation.
The discussions focused on Nigeria’s progress in implementing economic reforms and the next phase of the government’s agenda to translate macroeconomic stability into faster economic growth, increased private investment and stronger domestic revenue generation.
The statement disclosed that Banga commended Nigeria’s reform efforts, highlighting the significant increase in private capital inflows from approximately $300 million in 2023 to nearly $6 billion in 2026.
The development represents an approximately 20-fold increase in private capital inflows over the period.
Oyedele highlighted the country’s improving economic growth and disclosed that Nigeria’s tax-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio had increased from about seven per cent to 12.5 per cent over the same period.
According to the statement, the improvement in revenue generation provides the government with greater capacity to finance public investment without resorting to deficit monetisation.
The meeting also explored opportunities for Nigeria to leverage World Bank guarantee instruments to unlock financing for infrastructure development and attract additional private capital into the domestic economy.
Power infrastructure and human capital development were identified as key priorities for sustained public investment, given their importance to business competitiveness, productivity and job creation.
The discussions further emphasised the need to improve the quality of public expenditure to ensure that government spending delivers measurable economic and social benefits.
