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A recent Daily Trust editorial paints an exaggerated and unbalanced portrait of Nigeria as a nation overwhelmed by hunger, difficulties and impotence. We were not surprised by the newspaper’s opinion, since the document has constantly eliminated its readers on government policy. The Tinubu administration believes in the media law of offering constructive criticisms, but must be anchored to facts, not to distortion or selective pessimism.
The Daily Trust has violated this rule on several occasions by misrepresented the government’s policies and actions, a trend for which the newspaper has publicly apologized at least twice.
While no one in the Tinubu Administration denies that some of our citizens face economic challenges, it is essential to separate honest concern from pessimism and exaggerated generalization.
The Tinubu administration is not indifferent to the authentic concerns of the people. The irony is that what is often criticized today are, in fact, the policies that will guarantee that the Nigerians have a safer, stable and prosperous future.
False declarations, selective use of alarming projections and narratives do not serve the public good; They distract from genuine progress in progress at national level.
Suggest, as Daily Trust did in her editorial distorted, that “the Nigerians are hungry” without recognizing the interventions in progress of the government perpetuates despair instead of strengthening citizens with the truth.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not indifferent to the difficulties of the Nigerians. On the contrary, it is adopting deliberated and targeted steps – many already produce results – to restore our economy from a consumption inheritance without productivity, opacity without responsibility and politics that served the powerful, not people.
This is the context that Daily Trust has omitted in her jaundice editorial.
1. Unicef projection analysis vs. Chadre Harmoné.
The editorial referred to a UNICEF “forecast” from April 2025 stating that 33 million Nigerians, including 16 million children, should have faced hunger in 2025. This figure was widely mentioned but erroneously interpreted.
What has been presented was not a specific relationship for UNICEF, but the analysis of food insecurity and nutrition of the picture, prepared jointly by the Federal Government of Nigeria, FAO, WFP and UNICEF. It is not a current count, but a worse projection for the slender season of June-August 2025, taking on mitigation actions by the government or partners.
Here are some of the measures adopted by the government to ensure that we never get there: over 42,000 tons of cereals have been released by federal strategic reserves; 117,000 metric tons were subjected to additional supply; The president activated the food security board; The emergency nutritional support has been reduced to Borno, Yoube, Adamawa, Katsina, Sokoto and Bauchi.
Malnutrition is a serious national concern, but we do not locate it as a crisis of “northern Nigeria”. Since 2020, Covid has interrupted the global food system, has worsened the Russia-Ukraine war and is now aggravated by the conflict in the Middle East.
According to the update of food security of April 2025 of the World Bank, over 1.4 billion people worldwide are under food stress, a problem that is not unique for Nigeria.
2. Naira is not useless – has found its level and is strengthening
The use of the editorial of the term “Naira without value” is false and misleading.
Ever since hit a minimum of ₦ 1,800/$ 1 in March 2024, Naira has stood out strongly due to: increase in revenue and oil remittances, restoration of the trust of investors, unification of the FX window, reduction in the Backlog FX of over $ 4 billion (CBN data, May 2025)
From 1 August 2025, Naira has exchanged around 1,525/$ 1, a considerable appreciation from its lower fiber. Nigeria’s FX reserves are stabilizing and foreign wallets are taking up after important reforms in the monetary and fiscal space.
The Naira has not collapsed: it has been corrected and is now recovering.
3. Yes, this administration is listening and acting on practicable recommendations, not those guided by anger and ambition.
We welcome suggestions such as the suspension of VAT on food, the reduction of taxes on drugs and medical equipment and facilitate the tax burden on MSMES. The Federal Finance Ministry and the Tax Policy Committee and Tax Reforms are working on many of these.
Starting from January 2026, the new tax reforms will do so:
Simplify over 60 overlapping taxes in less manageable channels. Eliminates annoying taxes that rank small businesses. Create exemptions for essential goods, including some foods and medical items. Encourage the harmonization of the state federal tax to stop multiple taxation.
In the meantime, the president works closely with state governors through the National Economic Council (NEC) to implement immediate local tax relief, VAT exemptions and stabilization efforts of the food market in each state.
4. Social protection measures are expanding, not sparkling
The statement that the school feeding program is “emptied” is inaccurate and false.
The national home school power supply program serves over 9.8 million children in 53,000 schools in 36 states and FCTs.
Over 200,000 local cooks and farmers are engaged in the program, which is digitized for transparency and efficiency. The federal government has not abandoned the program.
On the largest security network, three million vulnerable families received ₦ 75,000 each under the renewed transfer of Conditional Cash of Hope, with plans to climb up to 15 million families. Starting from 7 August, over 396,000 students now benefit from in loans and salaries of Nelphund.
The presidential MSME subsidy pattern has provided funds to over 250,000 companies in 2025, in support of small and medium -sized enterprises despite the protests of the interest rates of the CBN.
The launch of the CNG buses and transport palliatives are reducing the costs of urban commuters
5. Global food prices are also guiding local pain, but Nigeria is responding
The facts:
The FAO food price index (June 2025) shows that global food prices remain 22% above the levels of 2019.
Even countries like Kenya, Ghana, Pakistan and Sri Lanka fight with the inflation of food prices. But Nigeria, under the president Tinubu, is actively mitigating this global shock, implementing the following measures: state of emergency on food safety; Invested ₦ 200 billion dry agriculture and for the whole year; 500,000 targeted farmers for input support in 2025; He launched the National Commodity Board to regulate the volatility of food prices; Transport subsidies introduced logistical costs for food.
6. The administration is coordinating with the states to relieve difficulties.
The president does not act in insulation. The joint-FG food distribution plans are implemented through commitments in progress with state governors, LGA, development and civil society partners. States have received support in direct cash and subsidies for the stabilization of the local market.
Coordination is underway to increase nutritional interventions, including support for micronutrients for women and children.
We also recognize that difficulties are irregular in all regions. However, Nigeria is a country, a people and the fight against hunger is a collective effort, not a northern, southern, Christian or Muslim question.
Once for unity, not despair
Let’s give the truth. Yes, the Nigerians detach themselves, but Nigeria is healing. Economic surgery undertaken by President Tinubu is not without pain, but is producing green sprouts.
To those who ask: “Where is the hope?” Let’s say that hope is in the stabilizing naira, in three million families raised by direct transfers and about 400,000 students who are now shaking without fear of paying taxes. Hope is in the 500,000 farmers who sow in a new food system. Hope is in a government that is finally dealing with poverty not as a slogan but as a solved problem.
Only recently this administration has started an effort to guide the basic economic growth and the reduction of poverty throughout Nigeria, since President Bola Tinubu has approved a development strategy at the department level called Renewed Hope Ward Development Program (Rhwdp).
This initiative, which was approved by the National Economic Council (NEC) during its 150th meeting, is part of the broader agenda of renewed hope of the president, who aims to an economy of 1 trillion of dollars by 2030.
The key aspects of the Rhwdp include: targeting for all 8,809 departments in Nigeria: the program is designed to reach each administrative department, ensuring that no community is left behind in national development efforts.
Focusing on the key development areas: aims to act as a coordinated intervention framework focused on the reduction of poverty, on food safety, on rural infrastructures, on nutrition and on the creation of jobs.
Identification and support of local economic actors: the program will identify at least 1,000 economically active people in each department and support them in improving local production and business operations. This will generate two -digit growth in most of the departments while Nigeria advances towards its objective as an economy of 1 trillion of dollars.
Several other interventions abound.
This administration does not ask for silence in the face of difficulties. He only asks for equity and a commitment shared to reconstruct this country, not only exaggerating his pain. This is what President Tinubu is expected from all the Nigerians and supporters of our country.
Domenica Dare is a special consultant of the President, Media & Public Communications
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