The Minister Of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu says President Bola Tinubu is advancing the long-delayed Sokoto–Badagry development corridor project to boost economic activity, despite it not being part of his original campaign promises.
Bagudu spoke on Tuesday at a technical session during the ongoing Government-Citizens Engagement organised by the Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Foundation at Arewa House in Kaduna.
The minister’s statement follows a recent claim by Rabiu Kwankwaso, former governor of Kano, who accused the federal government of concentrating resources in one part of the country while neglecting other regions.
Bagudu said part of the current administration’s goal is to ensure broader infrastructure investment aimed at driving inclusive growth across Nigeria.
He cited the Sokoto-Badagry project, which he said was first proposed during the third republic and part of former President Shehu Shagari’s vision, as part of the projects that are now being revived
‘President Tinubu believes that rebuilding Nigeria requires difficult but necessary investments in infrastructure. These projects may not be politically popular, but they are critical for long-term development’, he said.
Bagudu acknowledged that Nigeria’s current economic challenges are a result of inherited structural weaknesses, including a dysfunctional foreign exchange market, unsustainable fiscal policies, and declining external reserves.
‘During our inauguration as cabinet members, President Bola Ahmad Tinubu told us to imagine the work we were about to start as drawing water from a dry well’, he said.
‘We should understand that the situation we are in today is a compounded effect of what we have inherited. Nigeria has fought two economic recessions, drought, and COVID.”
According to the minister, the tough economic landscape led to Tinubu’s creation of new ministries and structural reforms, including eight institutional realignments to ensure more effective governance.
He said they included the establishment of the ministries of budget and economic planning, livestock development, arts and creative economy, marine and blue economy, and regional development.
‘Government is a work in progress. Having stabilised the economy, more attention shall be paid to generating higher inclusive growth by mobilising all tiers of government, eliminating poverty by targeting all geographical units of the country, and generating a $1 trillion economy by 2030’, Bagudu said.
‘Tinubu’s Reforms Have Increased Revenue For States’
Bagudu also pointed to the impact of petrol subsidy removal on state finances, noting a significant decline in debt burdens.
‘For example, Jigawa State’s debt profile in June 2023 stood at N40 billion. By March 2025, it had dropped to N1 billion. This reduction has created fiscal space for the state to borrow more responsibly if necessary’, he said.
Bagudu added that he has ‘participated in key economic decisions, driven by my belief in the potential of both Nigeria and the northern region’.
The minister also said he had observed a lack of systemic approaches to addressing marginalisation in northern Nigeria — an issue he remains committed to tackling through economic strategy.
