The Federal Government of Nigeria has reiterated its stance that the petrol subsidy era is definitively over. This assertion comes in response to a leaked draft of the Accelerated Stabilization and Advancement Plan (ASAP), which suggested a significant expenditure on fuel subsidies in 2024.
The ASAP, designed to address key economic challenges and stimulate development, indicated an estimated fuel subsidy expenditure of ₦5.4 trillion for 2024—₦1.8 trillion more than the ₦3.6 trillion spent in 2023. The draft document highlighted, “At current rates, expenditure on fuel subsidy is projected to reach ₦5.4 trillion by the end of 2024. This compares unfavourably with ₦3.6 trillion in 2023 and ₦2.0 trillion in 2022.”
Reacting to the leak, Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, issued a statement urging the public to disregard the circulating documents. “The attention of the Presidency has been drawn to two fiscal policy documents in circulation that are being given wide coverage by the mainstream media and social media platforms,” Onanuga said.
He emphasized that neither of the documents—the “Inflation Reduction and Price Stability (Fiscal Policy Measure etc) Order 2024” and the 65-page draft “Accelerated Stabilization and Advancement Plan (ASAP)”—are official. “We urge the public and the media to disregard the two documents and cease further discussions on them. None is an approved official document of the Federal Government of Nigeria. They are all policy proposals that are still subject to reviews at the highest level of government,” he clarified.
Onanuga underscored the iterative nature of policy making, stating, “It is important to understand that policymaking is an iterative process involving multiple drafts and discussions before any document is finalized. We assure the public that the official position on the documents will be made available after comprehensive reviews and approvals are completed.”
Reaffirming the government’s position on fuel subsidies, Onanuga stated, “The government wants to restate that its position on fuel subsidy has not changed from what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared on 29 May 2023. The fuel subsidy regime has ended. There is no ₦5.4 trillion being provisioned for it in 2024, as being widely speculated and discussed.”
He further quoted the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, who reiterated, “As previously stated by government officials, including myself, President Tinubu announced the end of the fuel subsidy program last year, and this policy remains firmly in place.”
Onanuga highlighted the government’s commitment to mitigating the impacts of subsidy removal and easing living costs for Nigerians. “Our strategy focuses on addressing key factors such as food inflation, which is significantly impacted by transport costs. With the implementation of our CNG initiative, which aims to displace high PMS and AGO costs, we expect to further reduce these costs. Our commitment to ending unproductive subsidies is steadfast, as is our dedication to supporting our most vulnerable populations,” he stated.
This firm stance follows previous statements, including those in December when the government dismissed claims by the World Bank that it was still subsidizing petrol. In April, former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai noted that the federal government was spending more on petrol subsidies than before, contradicting the government’s stance.