Mohammed Idris, minister of information and national orientation, says Nigeria is fully prepared to protect its citizens from terrorists and other criminal elements while adhering strictly to globally accepted rules of engagement.
Idris spoke in Abuja on Monday during his ministry’s end-of-year press briefing, addressing concerns over the federal government’s new counterterrorism doctrine, which classifies armed groups operating outside state authority — including bandits, militias, armed gangs and their enablers — as terrorists.
“Nigeria has to defend itself as a country by observing the highest standards of procedure,” the minister said.
“All our armed forces are trained, collaborate with international partners, and operate under strict protocols of engagement with terrorists. We must commend them for this professionalism.”
Reviewing the federal government’s performance in 2025, Idris said the administration of President Bola Tinubu remained focused on restoring macroeconomic stability and rebuilding investor confidence.
He said Nigeria’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 3.98 percent in the third quarter of 2025, driven largely by sustained expansion in the non-oil sector.
Idris added that headline inflation declined for eight consecutive months to 14.45 percent in November 2025, noting that food inflation was also easing steadily.
According to him, Nigeria’s external reserves rose to about $44.56 billion, helping to stabilise the naira and boost investor confidence, while the country recorded a trade surplus of N6.69 trillion in the third quarter of 2025 — a 27.29 percent year-on-year increase.
He also disclosed that investor confidence was reinforced by a massively oversubscribed Eurobond issuance that attracted orders worth about 400 percent of the $2.3 billion target.
On infrastructure, Idris said economic reforms were deliberately tied to delivery, stressing that “an economy cannot grow faster than the infrastructure that supports it.”
He said Nigeria recorded a peak daily energy output of 128,370.75 megawatt-hours on March 4, 2025 — the highest in the country’s history.
The minister added that the government rolled out the presidential metering initiative and issued the first bond under the presidential power sector debt reduction programme.
According to him, the federal government committed over N1.5 trillion to road infrastructure in 2025 — the largest such investment in Nigeria’s history — anchored on four legacy highway projects: the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway, the Sokoto-Badagry superhighway, the trans-Saharan highway, and the Akwanga-Jos-Bauchi-Gombe expressway.
“These are not conventional roads,” Idris said, noting that they are being constructed with reinforced concrete pavement designed to last between 50 and 100 years, reduce maintenance costs and promote local content.
He said reforms also extended to agriculture, with President Tinubu approving the recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture with N1.5 trillion.
The minister further confirmed the release of all 230 abducted pupils of St Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Niger state.
Idris said while 2025 focused on strengthening foundations, 2026 would prioritise building a secure, competitive and prosperous Nigeria.
