LAGOS — Concerns over Nigeria’s economic direction took centre stage at the 10th Bullion Lecture held in Lagos, where experts warned that the country’s heavy reliance on imports and weak fiscal priorities could undermine long-term growth and food security.
The event, organised by the Centre for Financial Journalism, brought together stakeholders from the banking, regulatory, and industrial sectors under the theme: “From Resources to Prosperity: How Raw Materials Development, Value Addition and Innovation Can Catalyse Nigeria’s Industrial Renaissance.”
Delivering a keynote critique, Chairman of the Alliance for Economic Research and Ethics and former President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, Kelvin Oye, said current policies encouraging massive importation are stifling local producers and deepening economic vulnerability.
He warned that continued dependence on imports could lead to food insufficiency, as foreign reserves are increasingly spent on bringing in goods rather than strengthening domestic production.
More Read
“Nigeria is heavily reliant on imports. Global disruptions are increasing costs and hardship, but they also present opportunities. We must look inwards,” Oye said.
He emphasised the need for a strategic shift towards local production and value addition, lamenting the country’s longstanding practice of exporting raw materials while importing finished goods at higher costs. According to him, more than 50 value-addition opportunities, particularly in agro-processing and mining, remain largely untapped.
Oye also criticised inconsistencies in fiscal policy, noting that while monetary policy has become more predictable, fiscal decisions appear misaligned with development priorities. He pointed to rising public debt and questioned government spending patterns, citing disparities in budget allocations.
More Read
“We keep borrowing even to pay salaries. We are not prioritising,” he said, adding that certain expenditures fail to deliver meaningful value to the economy.
The economist further raised concerns about increasing foreign participation in key domestic sectors such as agriculture and mining, alleging that regulatory loopholes are being exploited to the detriment of local operators.
“There is invasion by foreign players in our market space. They are disrupting our people on the farms and leveraging loopholes,” he said.
On the mining sector, Oye described artisanal operations as disorganised and inefficient, contributing minimally to national revenue despite Nigeria’s vast mineral resources.
He also highlighted structural distortions within the financial system, noting that banks tend to favour low-risk government securities over lending to productive sectors, a trend he said is limiting economic growth and widening inequality.
“The economy is rigged against Nigerians. Most of the beneficiaries are few,” he added.
More Read
Oye painted a grim picture of the country’s social conditions, citing estimates that over 130 million Nigerians are living in multidimensional poverty.
In a separate presentation, Director-General of the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Prof. Nnanyelugo Ike Muonso, disclosed that the agency is advancing legislation to mandate at least 30 per cent value addition to Nigeria’s raw materials before export.
He warned that continued reliance on raw commodity exports is costing the country jobs, income, and exchange rate stability, while stressing the need for urgent investment in infrastructure, energy, and logistics.
Representing the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Yemi Cardoso, the Director of Statistics at the apex bank, Dr. Usman Moses Okpanachi, reaffirmed the bank’s support for policies aimed at boosting value addition. He emphasised the importance of robust data systems in improving economic planning and policy effectiveness.
Okpanachi also highlighted plans for collaboration between the central bank and agencies in the raw materials sector to de-risk investments and unlock growth in underserved areas.
By the end of the lecture, participants agreed that Nigeria’s vast resource wealth would remain underutilised unless bold policy decisions are made to prioritise local production, strengthen regulatory frameworks, and drive structural economic reforms.
