SAT SEPT 19 2026-theGBJournal| The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has outlined key elements of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to strengthen coordination between fiscal and monetary policies and promote greater macroeconomic stability.
The agreement institutionalises collaboration between the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria, reinforcing a shared commitment to sound economic management and long-term economic resilience.
Similarly, the framework is designed to improve policy consistency, enhance information sharing, strengthen economic forecasting, and support efforts to sustainably reduce inflation while fostering investment, growth, and job creation.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Friday.
The key elements highlighted by Oyedele are:
• Aligned macroeconomic assumptions and more consistent forecasts for inflation, GDP growth, revenue, liquidity, financing requirements and the external sector.
• Stronger, more structured information-sharing between the two institutions, with clearer mechanisms for resolving areas where fiscal and monetary actions could otherwise work at cross-purposes.
• A coordinated, whole-of-government approach to inflation, combining disciplined and disinflationary fiscal spending with measures addressing food, energy and logistics costs – including strategic grain reserves, farmer support, rural road investment, and engagement with state governments on road levies and farm-access infrastructure.
• Continued price stability measures on fuel without reintroducing distortionary consumption subsidy, alongside tax exemptions and exchange-rate stability already helping moderate pump prices.
• Expanded and more frequent economic data – including a Producer Price Index, employment and productivity data – developed with the National Bureau of Statistics to support the CBN’s evolution toward inflation targeting.
• Closer coordination of government financing and cash management to avoid crowding out private-sector credit, and continued reinforcement of fiscal governance bodies including the Fiscal Responsibility Commission, the Bureau of Public Procurement, NEITI and the Office of the Auditor-General.
The Finance Minister noted that, Nigeria’s external position strengthened through 2025 and into 2026, with an overall balance-of-payments surplus of more than $5 billion in 2025 and external reserves currently above $55 billion.
In the third quarter of 2026, non-oil exports outpaced oil exports for the first time, while imports of refined petroleum products declined as domestic refining capacity expanded.
”Global index providers have taken note of the improvements,” he said, adding that, FTSE Russell has confirmed Nigeria’s return from Unclassified to Frontier Market status, effective 21 September 2026, citing gains in foreign-exchange liquidity, capital repatriation and market accessibility.”
Separately, JPMorgan announced this week that Nigeria will be included in its new frontier local-currency government bond index.
These achievements were further underscored by the Central Bank of Nigeria’s recognition as the 2026 Central Bank of the Year.
“Capital follows trust before returns,” Minister Oyedele said. “That is why policy consistency, certainty and clarity remain central to everything both institutions do.”
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