Minister of Finance, Wale Edun has said the Economic Management Team is looking at how Nigeria can benefit from the fallout of the tariffs imposed on several countries by United States President Donald Trump.
Trump had on April 2, 2025 announced sweeping tariffs on all imports into the country, including those from Nigeria.
Edun spoke at the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) Corporate Governance Forum for Government Owned Enterprises (GOEs) in Abuja on Monday.
The event also marked the launch the GOEs’ Scorecard, an initiative developed by MOFI. In line with the initiative, the GOEs are to be assessed and rated according to the criteria set out by MOFI, which they must meet.
At a media briefing after the main event, Edun spoke on how the Nigerian government is responding to Trump’s tariffs, which have unsettled several countries.
The minister said the Economic Management Team is looking at how Nigeria can benefit from the development.
He said, “For the Economic Management Team of Mr. President and for indeed his whole government, we are going back to the drawing board to look at the scenarios that may play out if the current tariff situation is prolonged.
“For Nigeria, in terms of exports, it’s not too bad because oil minerals are excluded by America from being in any way sanctioned with tariffs. But based on our non-oil exports and based on the formula that the Americans are using, we do have a 14% tariff on our exports. But it’s a lot better than Vietnam, which has 46%.
“So we need to look at these situations and see what the opportunities are. The Nigeria of today, with a relatively stable economy and an attractive investment environment, including attractive exchange rate, is a place where if they can’t produce in Vietnam, they can come and produce in Nigeria.
“We are here, we are ready, we are waiting, and we have what will be attractive to them in terms of policies, in terms of market, and in terms of export capacity.”
The minister stressed that strong corporate governance is key to attracting investment into state-owned enterprises.
Speaking during the event, MOFI MD, Dr. Armstrong Takang noted that, globally, GOEs deliver essential services that drive economic growth and poverty reduction.
Takang described MOFI as custodian of public wealth, managing a diverse portfolio spanning energy, infrastructure, financial services, manufacturing, agriculture, and digital services.
“It holds majority stakes in over half of its over 50 portfolio companies, making it a critical driver of Nigeria’s economic landscape and currently actively engaging with GOE boards to enforce policies that maximize value, contrasting with its prior passive stance that led to value erosion,” he said.
According to him, the organization leads reforms within Nigeria’s GOE ecosystem,”influencing stakeholders and setting standards and positioning Nigeria’s GOEs as drivers of innovation and global competitiveness within the GOE ecosystem, while acting as a catalyst to attract private sector collaboration and investment into Nigeria’s GOE ecosystem”.
