June 13, 2026
By Emeka Anaeto, Business Editor
Nigeria’s leading economists and financial experts have disagreed with some of the latest policy prescriptions by the International Monetary Fund, IMF, for Nigeria, even as they endorsed the Fund’s warning against the Federal Government’s proposed $5 billion loan from a bank in Abu Dhabi.
Highlights of the IMF positions contained in its 2026 Article IV Mission Concluding Statement include a warning against the plan of the Federal Government (FG) to borrow $5b from First Abu Dhabi Bank of United Arab Emirate (UAE) saying that it comes at a dangerous collateral amounting 133.3% of the loan.
Other high points of the IMF statement include that Nigeria should raise its VAT rate because it is still low compared to other countries within the region; CBN should continue monetary tightening since inflationary pressures have returned; CBN should guard against excessive reliance on portfolio investments; FG should step up funding cash transfers program as poverty rate is increasing; Inflation is going to moderate in the second half of this year; reforms have strengthened macroeconomic stability; FG’s budgetary spending should be more transparent; and FG’s 2026 deficit to be around 4.4% of 2025 GDP.
