President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared that Nigeria has passed through its own “Red Sea” following years of difficult economic reforms, urging Nigerians to look ahead as the country enters what he described as an “age of prosperity.”
Tinubu made the declaration on Thursday in his Independence Day address to Nigerians to mark the country’s 66th anniversary, with the theme, “From Reforms to Prosperity.”
The President said his administration had spent the past three years confronting what he described as deep economic distortions, insisting that the difficult reforms were necessary to correct the country’s economic direction.
According to him, the government had now moved beyond the emergency phase of its economic programme and was shifting its attention towards improving living standards, creating jobs and expanding opportunities for Nigerians.
“The emergency treatment is over. The foundation has been repaired. The central economic task before us has changed,” Tinubu said.
“For three years, our overriding purpose was to correct our nation’s course. Now, our purpose is simple: shared and widespread prosperity.”
Tinubu said the reforms had contributed to improved economic indicators, including economic growth of more than four per cent, reduced inflation from its peak, rebuilt foreign reserves and greater stability in the foreign exchange market.
He also said Nigeria recorded more than $6bn in non-oil export revenue in 2025, describing the development as evidence of growing activity among Nigerian businesses.
The President said the next phase of his administration would focus heavily on reducing the cost of living by lowering the cost of production and transportation.
He said the government would expand mechanised irrigation and dry-season farming, improve access to seeds and fertiliser, increase agricultural mechanisation and invest in storage and transportation infrastructure.
“Our priority is to bring down the cost of living. We will achieve this by lowering the cost of producing and moving the things Nigerians consume,” he said.
Tinubu also identified job creation and industrial growth as major priorities, saying the government would use Nigeria’s gas resources to power industries, support businesses to revive factories and expand digital connectivity.
“We are therefore placing jobs, enterprise, and industrial growth at the heart of our government’s policies,” he said.
“I want to see more Nigerians making things. I want to see more Nigerian farms feeding our cities and supplying our factories. I want to see Nigerian businesses selling Nigerian goods to the whole world.”
On poverty, the President acknowledged that millions of Nigerians were still struggling with food, school fees, medical expenses and transportation costs.
He said the government could not erase problems that had accumulated over generations within four years, but could change the country’s trajectory.
“We cannot erase in four years what accumulated over generations. But we can change its course,” Tinubu said.
He said the administration would continue strengthening direct support for vulnerable households, improve the National Social Register and expand programmes such as the Nigerian Education Loan Fund and CREDICORP.
Tinubu said such interventions were intended to provide a bridge towards broader prosperity rather than serve as a permanent substitute for economic opportunity.
“These programmes are not substitutes for prosperity. They are a bridge to aid our nation’s citizens on their path towards it,” he said.
“Our objective is not to manage poverty more efficiently. We will defeat it.”
The President further called on Nigerians to remain focused on the future, saying the country had emerged from a difficult period and should not return to previous economic arrangements.
“Nigeria has corrected its course. We have passed through our own Red Sea. This is not the time to look back,” Tinubu said.
He described the future as a “Promised Land” of abundance and opportunity where prosperity would be broadly shared and children would have opportunities beyond the circumstances of their birth.
“The Promised Land before us is a Nigeria of abundance and opportunity; a nation where prosperity is broadly shared, where every child can dream beyond the circumstances of his birth,” he said.
“Our destination is in sight. Our foundations are strong. Our direction is clear. So let us go forward. No looking back.”
Tinubu urged Nigerians to move forward with renewed faith in the country, assuring them that the sacrifices made during the reform period would yield benefits.
“The age of reform has done its work. Now begins the age of prosperity,” the President declared.
