President Bola Tinubu has maintained that his administration’s economic reforms are laying a solid foundation for long-term growth, insisting that although the measures have been difficult, they are already producing positive results.
Tinubu made the remarks on Wednesday, July 15, while receiving a delegation from Deloitte Africa, led by its Chief Executive Officer for Africa, Ruwayda Redfearn, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
The meeting was attended by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman of the Nigerian Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, and other senior government officials.
According to a statement issued by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu said the administration would remain committed to reforms aimed at strengthening government revenue and expanding economic opportunities.
“Yes, reforms are difficult. It has not been a McDonald’s customer relationship but a harvester of good things, if implemented well, and that is what we are about,” Tinubu said.
“The reforms on revenue will continue to stimulate growth. And the effect of the reform? Yes, some issues are difficult, taking the bitter medicine, but it is working well.
“For the economy, Nigeria is making serious foundational progress,” Tinubu added.
The President said the policy changes introduced over the past three years had helped reposition the country’s fiscal system, strengthened financial institutions and improved Nigeria’s competitiveness in the global economy.
Reflecting on his professional background, Tinubu recalled his early years in the accounting profession and praised Deloitte’s reputation for developing talent.
“The family of Deloitte, you just reminded me of my cradle years in accountancy and where I cut my childhood accounting teeth in Chicago.
“Deloitte has a good training programme, and I believe you will continue to reflect that,” Tinubu said.
He urged the company to expand its investment in Nigeria by recruiting and training more young Nigerians, describing the country’s youthful population as a valuable resource for future economic growth.
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Speaking on behalf of the firm, Redfearn pledged Deloitte’s support for the administration’s reform agenda.
“We are before you to say that we want to serve. We have a local team on the ground that is ready, as well as the global firm, to support you and support your administration as you lead the country,” Redfearn said.
She noted that Deloitte employs more than 500,000 people worldwide, including over 6,000 across Africa, and generated $74 billion in revenue in 2025.
The Chief Executive Officer of Deloitte West Africa, Yomi Olugbenro, said the reforms had created a solid platform for growth but stressed that their real success would depend on how they improved the lives of ordinary Nigerians.
“We do what we do because of the philosophy that our Africa CEOs talk about, making an impact that matters.
“Where we are at the moment, we believe that the ground has been solidly laid. There is a need to truly extract more value and deliver the dividends of democracy to ordinary Nigerians on the street.
“The bigger work is really about how to cascade some of those big reforms further down,” Olugbenro said.
He added that Deloitte was prepared to leverage its global experience in supporting economic reforms across different countries to assist Nigeria.
“We have use cases, examples, experiences of how we supported nations all around the world, so Nigeria will definitely benefit from those experiences.
“That is why we are here, and we welcome the invitation as to where exactly you want us to support you,” Olugbenro said.
Oyedele also encouraged Deloitte to prioritise programmes that would equip young Nigerians with skills needed to drive the country’s future economic development.