Media engagement has become crucial for public figures to shape narratives around governance and economic policies. Recently, Reno Omokri, Nigeria's ambassador-designate to Mexico, made several claims about Bola Tinubu's macroeconomic performance during a Channels TV interview. These claims have been verified by DUBAWA, a fact-checking organization. Omokri's statements covered various aspects of Nigeria's economy, including federal allocations to states, student loans, petroleum product imports and exports, global GDP growth, inflation rates, and economic growth in Lagos State.
Omokri claimed that federal allocations to states have increased fivefold under Tinubu's administration. However, official statistics from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) show that total allocations disbursed to state governments rose from N3.58 trillion in 2023 to N5.81 trillion in 2024, representing a 62% year-on-year increase. The Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) also reported that state allocation had increased by 130% annually, averaging N9.8 trillion annually under the current administration.
Omokri also stated that over 1 million students are currently receiving student loans from the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). According to Akintunde Sawyerr, NELFUND's managing director, 1,819,011 Nigerian students have benefited from the initiative since it began in May 2024. The agency has disbursed N355,872,779,439.25 to 319 Nigerian public tertiary institutions. The distribution of students across regions shows that the north-west has the highest number of applicants, followed by the north-east and south-west.
Another claim made by Omokri was that Nigeria has shifted from being the number one importer of petroleum products to the number one exporter of petroleum products in West Africa. However, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) indicate that Nigeria still remains a net importer of refined petroleum products. Although the Dangote Refinery has increased exports of refined petroleum products, there is insufficient evidence to support Omokri's claim that Nigeria has become the largest exporter.
Omokri also cited a World Bank report stating that Nigeria is the sixth largest contributor to global GDP growth. However, no such report was found, and International Monetary Fund data projected Nigeria's economy to contribute 1.5% to global real GDP growth, placing it sixth behind countries like Turkey, Indonesia, and the United States. The data reflects growth-rate forecasts, not overall economic size.
Furthermore, Omokri claimed that headline inflation was at 30% when President Tinubu took office and has now decreased by half. According to official data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the headline inflation stood at 22.41% year-on-year when Tinubu assumed office in May 2023. Following the removal of the petrol subsidy and the floating of the Naira in mid-2023, inflation peaked at a 28-year high of over 34.2% in mid-2024. As of August 2026, Nigeria's headline inflation rate had fallen slightly to 15.39%.
Finally, Omokri made claims about Lagos State's economic growth, stating that its GDP grew from under $100 billion to $259 billion (PPP) within six years, making it Africa's second-largest city economy. While official statements valued Lagos State's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at $259 billion on a Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) basis, Lagos was already raking in more than $100 billion even before the six-year range Omokri cited. The number of millionaires in Lagos also did not grow as claimed, with reports showing a decline from approximately 5,000 in 2020 to 3,800 by 2026.
Key points
- - Omokri's claim that federal allocations to states have increased fivefold under Tinubu's administration is false. - Over 1 million students are currently receiving student loans from NELFUND. - Nigeria's inflation rate has decreased, but not by the extent claimed by Omokri.
