Nigerian president Bola Tinubu
Letter from Nigeria: New leader delivers shock therapy
President Tinubu has already targeted major reforms at the country’s dysfunctional downstream and upstream sectors, as well as overhauling monetary policy
Nigerians had low expectations of their new president, Bola Tinubu, who was elected with a record-low 36.61% of the vote in February. As co-founder of the All Progressives Congress party, which brought his predecessor Muhammadu Buhari to power in 2015, Tinubu was regarded as a continuity candidate, unlikely to deliver much-needed reform after eight years of sclerotic Buhari rule. However, Tinubu has made an immediate impact on Nigeria’s political economy, breaking the inertia that characterised Buhari’s tenure and upending the entire petroleum sector—starting with the downstream. Subsidy elimination Tinubu used his inauguration speech in May to end a nearly 50-year-old fuel subsidy. This had
Also in this section
28 January 2026
The alliance looks to bolster market management credibility by bringing greater clarity and unity to output cuts and producer capacity later in 2026
23 January 2026
A strategic pivot away from Russian crude in recent weeks tees up the possibility of improved US-India trade relations
23 January 2026
The signing of a deal with a TotalEnergies-led consortium to explore for gas in a block adjoining Israel’s maritime area may breathe new life into the country’s gas ambitions
22 January 2026
As Saudi Arabia pushes mining as a new pillar of its economy, Saudi Aramco is positioning itself at the intersection of hydrocarbons, minerals and industrial policy
