MINISTER of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris yesterday highlighted some of the key achievements of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Administration.
Speaking at a news conference to herald a flurry of ministerial briefings to highlight the scorecards ahead of the second anniversary of the government, he explained that a huge impact had been made in the student loan scheme initiated by the Administration.
According to him, no fewer than 169,000 students got N32.8 billion in tuition and upkeep allowances under the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND).
The student loan is a major campaign promise of the President.
The minister said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed his ministers to present their scorecards to Nigerians.
He said the presidential directive was to keep Nigerians informed about policies and programmes.
Idris said the briefing will allow Nigerians the opportunity to interrogate the activities of the government.
He said: “President Tinubu is determined to ensure that his administration engages and communicates robustly, and this ministerial briefing series is one of the measures he has directed to achieve this goal.
“In 2024, we hosted 25 ministers at these briefings and reached millions of people in Nigeria and abroad on traditional and digital media platforms.
“These briefings are an opportunity to highlight and explain government policies, programmes, and actions; to simplify and contextualise these for the benefit of all citizens, interest groups, and stakeholders at large, while also decisively tackling misinformation and disinformation.
“Over the next three months, as we approach the second anniversary of the administration, we will bring honourable ministers to this platform, weekly.
“This year 2025 is a year of consolidation, a year for building on the gains we have seen in the first 19 months of the administration.”
The minister said NELFUND disbursed N32.8 billion to over 169,000 students (N20 billion in school fees and N12.8 billion in upkeep allowances).
On security, Idris said in 2024, the armed forces neutralised more than 8,000 terrorists and bandits, and arrested 11,600 others, with more than 10,000 weapons recovered.
“While we still have a lot of work ahead. Our highways have grown safer. The hitherto notorious Abuja-Kaduna highway is one example. We will not relent in our efforts. Additionally, about 8,000 kidnap victims were successfully rescued,” he said.
Idris added that following its designation as a terrorist organisation by the Federal High Court, security forces are now empowered to apply maximum force against the Lakurawa armed group.
On the economy, Idris said the reforms are delivering significant results across key sectors.
The removal of petrol subsidy, he said, blocked leakages amounting to hundreds of billions of Naira annually.
He said the introduction of the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS) in December 2023 enhanced transparency in foreign exchange transactions, facilitated the clearance of billions of dollars in backlogs, and restored investor confidence in the country.
“Last week, the Naira reached an eight-month high in the official market, while foreign capital inflow into the Nigerian Stock Exchange rose from 4 per cent in mid-2023 to an average of 16 per cent by the end of 2024,” Idris said.
On food security and inflation, the minister restated the Federal Government’s commitment to lowering the cost of commodities through massive investments in agriculture.
He said while the government will not impose price controls on food commodities in line with the principles of a free-market economy, it remains focused on reducing prices by boosting agricultural production and increasing supply.
“We used to have these commodity boards where prices were fixed, but in the spirit of free market and encouraging entrepreneurship, especially within the agricultural value chain, the government didn’t feel that they needed to begin to control prices.
“Now, what the government is doing is to ensure that there is massive production of food items and it’s a supply and demand issue.
“Once you have whatever you need in abundance, the tendency is that the price will automatically come down,” he said.
The minister recalled that in 2024, Nigeria emerged as the most attractive destination for oil and gas investments in Africa, securing over $5 billion in Final Investment Decisions (FIDs).
He described 2025 as a year of consolidation and building on the progress made in the first 19 months of the Tinubu Administration.