Nigeria’s economic hardship coupled with capital flight and declining investor confidence are products of policies introduced without “adequate safeguards”, according to Yemi Kale, chief economist at the African Export-Import Bank.
The chief economist stressed that policymakers must shift its focus from merely creating government policies to effectively implementing them in a way that builds public trust.
“Most of Nigeria’s economic hardship is not caused by unforeseen events but by policies introduced without adequate safeguards,” Kale said at the 2025 Vanguard Economic Discourse themed, “Nigeria’s Economic Outlook 2025: Hardship and Pathways to Sustainable Recovery,” in Lagos.
In his keynote address, Kale noted that Nigeria’s current economic hardship is largely the result of domestic policy missteps rather than external shocks.
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“Capital flight, declining investor confidence, and rising poverty are not theoretical issues; they are clear indicators of poor economic governance. We must address these disruptions with the urgency they demand,” he said.
“Many of the country’s challenges arise from flawed policies, not unexpected external events. Public trust is not built by creating policies alone but by implementing them with foresight, fairness, and firmness,” the former statistician general of the nation said.
He emphasised the need for a move from reactive crisis management to proactive governance, aimed at shielding Nigerians from future economic shocks.
Kale also highlighted that these domestic policy failures have complicated external policy coordination, disrupted macroeconomic forecasting, and limited the flexibility of both fiscal and monetary responses, making traditional approaches increasingly untenable
“What is required is a comprehensive realignment of our economic strategy, focused on structural reforms, productivity, innovation, and a deliberate shift towards inclusive, human-centered development,” the renowned economist emphasised.
He stressed that the success of this transition will depend on more than just policy enactment. It will require strong institutional capacity, interagency coordination, and political will to ensure effective execution.
