…as ICAN hosts 2026 Economic Outlook
As Nigeria looks ahead to 2026, Haruna Yahaya, the president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), and other industry leaders have emphasised accountability as a vital economic asset for sustainable growth.
Yahaya, speaking at the 2026 Economic Outlook forum organised by the ICAN in Lagos as part of its 60th anniversary celebrations, said accountability should be treated as an economic asset rather than a governance slogan.
“Accountability is not merely a governance ideal; it is an economic imperative.
“Countries with strong institutions, credible oversight, and transparent systems consistently outperform those burdened by weak governance,” Yahaya said.
While citing GDP growth above four percent in 2025, easing inflation toward the mid-14 percent range, stronger foreign-exchange reserves, and a Purchasing Managers’ Index of 57.6, Yahaya warned that the gains remain fragile.
“These indicators show the economy is regaining balance and credibility,” he said. “But progress must be protected through discipline, transparency, and accountability,” he said.
As Nigeria advances through 2026, other speakers also agreed that the success of reforms will depend less on policy announcements and more on whether institutions can execute consistently, transparently, and at scale.
The industry leaders emphasised that Nigeria may be emerging from a period of economic turbulence, but that the country now faces more complex challenges; converting improving macroeconomic numbers into jobs, incomes, and durable public trust.
Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, speaking during a panel session, said, “Nigeria is currently at an inflection point. After the turbulence of the 2023–2024 reform cycle, the economy has regained a measure of macroeconomic stability.
“Inflation has moderated, the exchange rate has stabilised relative to earlier volatility, external reserves have strengthened, and growth is concentrating around the 4 percent range.”
However, Hayatu-Deen cautioned that stabilisation alone would not be enough.
“Stability is not the same thing as prosperity,” he said. “The central question before us is not whether stabilisation has begun, but whether it can be sustained and translated into outcomes that Nigerians can actually feel.”
Growth Without Lived Prosperity
Despite the improved indicators, speakers at the event said Nigeria’s growth remains largely job-light, with poverty and inequality still elevated.
“We see improved fiscal signals and stronger policy coordination,” Hayatu-Deen noted. “But we also confront persistent challenges. Growth remains job-light, real incomes are only slowly recovering, and more people live below the poverty line than ever before.”
He added that Nigeria’s core problem has shifted from policy formulation to delivery. “Nigeria’s challenge in 2026 appears no longer to be stabilisation alone, but execution and very importantly, the quality of that execution.”
Fiscal Pressure and the Pre-Election Risk
Concerns over fiscal sustainability featured prominently, especially as Nigeria moves toward another election cycle.
“When a large share of government revenue is absorbed by debt service, accountability in budgeting, revenue mobilisation, and expenditure efficiency becomes a matter of national consequence,” Hayatu-Deen said, stressing that debt sustainability should be judged by cash-flow realities, not just headline figures.
Tax Reforms and Institutional Capacity
Taiwo Oyedele, chairman of the presidential committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, said Nigeria’s tax laws enacted in 2025 represented the most significant fiscal restructuring in decades.
“Budgets are not instruments of hope or aspiration; they are instruments of economic planning,” Oyedele said, noting that the 2026 federal budget stands at about N58 trillion, while state governments have budgeted roughly N35 trillion combined.
On tax reforms, he said: “There is a lot of misinformation around these reforms. But laws alone do not raise revenue. Capacity, systems, and professionals do.”
“When you say no to tax,” Oyedele added, “you are effectively saying yes to the status quo, one that has failed to deliver infrastructure and basic services.”
Panel Highlights: From Policy to Execution
During a panel session that followed the keynote addresses, business leaders and economists agreed that the gap between macroeconomic repair and lived prosperity remains Nigeria’s defining challenge.
Panelists said households were yet to feel meaningful relief despite stabilising indicators, raising questions about how businesses can structurally rather than tactically adapt to convert growth into sustained demand, jobs, and real income gains.
They also warned that reform fatigue ahead of elections could test fiscal discipline, urging companies to stress-test cash flows, review capital expenditure plans, and strengthen operational resilience.
