Why the Nigerian Growth Story Deserves a Closer Look
By
Bamidele Atoyebi
When the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) declared in a viral video that after two years of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, the country was “not better off,” it triggered a wave of public debate. Their unanimous vote carried the weight of authority, yet it risked oversimplifying a complex national story.
Almost immediately, a viral TikTok rebuttal challenged that verdict. With biting sarcasm, the netizen quipped: “Then you need to see a doctor if you still hope for a better Nigeria,” before listing reforms that suggest the country is making progress, however uneven. Beneath the satire lay facts that deserve serious consideration.
Take the passport system. Not long ago, Nigerians endured endless queues and six-month delays before securing international passports. According to The Punch, reforms under the Ministry of Interior have automated applications, cleared backlogs, and introduced doorstep delivery.
Processing time has dropped to as little as two to three weeks, with a one-week target in view. That is a far cry from the inefficiency of the past.
Education tells a similar story. The TikTok user rightly pointed out that Nigeria cannot be “better off” with constant ASUU strikes. According to The ICIR, President Tinubu approved ₦50 billion to clear nearly two decades of unpaid Earned Academic Allowances for university staff.
In addition, according to reports, four months of withheld salaries were released to lecturers, a gesture that signals an effort to repair strained relations with academia. The exchange rate is stable, and the ASUU strike has disappeared. No single strike for more than 2years, that’s huge!
The aviation sector offers another striking example. Nigeria recovered over $831 million in trapped funds owed to foreign airlines, a crisis that once crippled confidence in the sector.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) confirmed that over $850 million was repaid, restoring Nigeria’s compliance rating from 49% to 75.5%. This move is already boosting confidence among foreign operators, allowing airlines to expand services to Nigerian routes again.
Beyond these highlighted cases, reforms in the energy sector also matter. The government approved a ₦4 trillion ($2.6 billion) refinancing plan to stabilize electricity sector debts, projected to save over ₦1.1 trillion annually. Structural reforms of this kind are slow to reflect in daily life, but they create the foundation for sustainable growth.
None of this suggests Nigeria’s challenges have been erased, but we are getting it right this time under a visionary leader. To claim that Nigeria is “not better off” at all, as the NBA did, overlooks measurable progress and is quite shameful for the so-called body of intellectuals.
Nigeria is in transition; years of policy neglect and institutional decay cannot be erased in two years. However, progress in passport, tax reform bill, increase in revenue generation and monthly FAAC going to state and local government, education, NNPC meeting OPEC quota, NCC and health ministry being listed among global impactful ranking, UK lifting ban on 4000 Nigeria products for export, cocoa dealers turned millionaires and billionaires within 2years, mining sector booming in revenue generation, stock market turning hot cake, foreign FX inflow increased by 200%, among others are not improvements that should be bruised aside.
This government has taken steps in the right direction. What Nigeria needs now is constructive engagement and accountability, not sweeping dismissals or politically aggravated criticisms that risk discouraging reforms.
Lawyers, as custodians of truth and justice, owe Nigerians nuance. Citizens deserve honesty about both the gains and the gaps. And while no one should deny the difficulties of today, it is equally dishonest to suggest that nothing has improved.
Nigeria’s growth story is stronger than we admit. The challenge is not whether change is happening; it is whether we have the patience and integrity to build on it.
Bamidele Atoyebi is the Convenor of BAT Ideological Group, National Coordinator of Accountability and Policy monitoring and a publisher at Unfiltered and Mining Reporting
