Ahead of the inauguration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration on Monday, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, the President African Development Bank (AfDB), has said Fuel subsidy is crippling Nigeria’s economy.
Speaking at a lecture in Abuja on Saturday, the development bank chief stated that only the rich benefit from fuel subsidies, costing $10 billion alone in 2022.
He lamented that the annual cost spent on fuel subsidies had been mindblowing.
According to him, the federal government is funding the extravagant lifestyle of the wealthy with fuel subsidies payment.
He added that the funds spent on fuel subsidies can be channelled into the development of the private sector.
Adeshina advised Tinubu’s administration to invest massively in the private sector instead of funding fuel subsidies.
“Estimates show that the poorest 40 per cent of the population consume just three per cent of petrol.”
“The cost of governance in Nigeria is way too high and should be drastically reduced to free up more resources for development.
“Nigeria is spending very little on development.
“Today, Nigeria is ranked among countries with the lowest human development index in the world”,he stated.
