• Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole

The Federal Government has suspended the implementation of contentious provisions in the Financial Reporting Council (Amendment) Act 2023 following concerns raised by private sector stakeholders.

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, announced the decision in a release on Monday.

She said that it followed a series of high-level consultations with key industry groups.

These include the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA), the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), and the Oil Producers Trade Section (OPTS).

At the heart of the concerns is the reclassification of large private companies as Public Interest Entities, requiring them to remit annual dues between 0.02 and 0.05 percent of turnover without a ceiling.

This is in contrast to the ₦25 million cap placed on publicly listed companies regardless of their size.

Stakeholders warned that the provision could increase compliance costs and hurt investor confidence.

But the minister said the policy was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s pro-business posture under the 8-Point Agenda and has responded with practical measures.

She explained that a stakeholder consultation was held on March 26, 2025, leading to an administrative pause and the formation of a Technical Working Group.

The group, she noted, comprised representatives from NECA, MAN, ALTON, NACCIMA, CAC, SEC, and others and held six meetings over three weeks that culminated in the submission of a comprehensive report on April 17, 2025.

“To provide immediate relief, the Ministry has now directed the Financial Reporting Council to impose an interim cap of ₦25 million on annual dues for private sector PIEs, aligning them with the publicly quoted companies.

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has earmarked to plough back N1.7 trillion gross annual savings from domestic fuel distributions into the economy.

In a statement, the company said that the daily distributions of 65 million litres of petrol, diesel and Jet AI and CNG nationwide would bolster the government’s presidential CNG initiative, and every key actors in the distributions value chains.

In a breakdown of the refinery’s benefits to all Nigerians, it emphasized  that the familiar narrative of  perennial fuel scarcity and adulterated fuel imports by marketers is being replaced by ”  no more fuel scarcity, and consistent supply of high quality petroleum products from the refinery.

It added that the refinery’s operations will likely cut down the nation’s inflation from the current 33 percent to 23 percent, while pushing the GDP growth rate from 2 percent to  3.4 percent.

Regarding the over N720 billion it was investing on deploying 4,000 Compressed Natural Gas-powered trucks for the nationwide distribution of petroleum products, the company said that it will significantly benefit over 42 million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) by reducing energy costs and enhancing profitability.

The initiative, which eliminates transportation costs for fuel marketers and large-scale consumers, is expected to help reduce pump prices and inflation.

From August 15, Dangote will begin the direct delivery of petrol and diesel to filling stations, industrial facilities, and other high-volume consumers, the company said.

According to the statement from the refinery, it aims to meet Nigeria’s daily consumption of 65 million litres of refined petroleum products.

This includes 45 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol, 15 million litres of diesel, and 5 million litres of aviation fuel.

The initiative is also expected to resuscitate dormant filling stations, fostering job creation in the process.

Over 15,000 direct jobs are projected to be created across the logistics chain, including drivers, station managers, and attendants at the CNG stations.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has empowered the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) to implement a more efficient and better streamlined Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project delivery process by approving PPP thresholds for Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).

The approval was granted during the just-concluded Nigeria PPP Summit 2025, where President Tinubu declared that his administration was strengthening the ICRC as the “engine room of Nigeria’s infrastructure revolution,” noting that PPPs would be pivotal in driving transformative development across the country.

Until now, all PPP projects—regardless of size—were subjected to Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval, resulting in extended processes and limiting the participation of MDAs with small and mid-scale projects.

The Director General of the ICRC, Dr Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, who disclosed the presidential approval, said: that the new policy decentralizes the approval process, allowing MDAs to approve projects below specified thresholds under ICRC guideline, thereby supporting all scale of projects and encouraging broader private sector investment in PPPs.

“Under the new directive, PPP projects valued below ₦10 billion for Parastatals/Agencies and ₦20 billion for Ministries will now be approved by respective Project Approval Boards (PABs) that will be constituted under ICRC guidelines and regulations.

Only projects exceeding these thresholds—or those involving multiple Ministries and requiring inter-agency coordination—will require FEC approval.

“Importantly, all such projects must be entirely privately funded, with no government guarantees or financial commitments from the treasury.

Notwithstanding the new thresholds, every PPP project must be submitted to the ICRC for review and certification.

The ICRC must issue certificates of compliance before any PPP project can be approved by the PAB and other approving bodies,” he said.

Dr Ewalefoh explained that this framework marks a shift from the previously adopted one-size-fits-all approach, to a more dynamic and scale-sensitive model that will unlock low-value but high-impact projects. “This approval is a game-changer, especially for sectors like health, education, agriculture, and housing.

We expect to see private sector- led investments in projects like rural diagnostic medical centers, construction of classroom blocks, student hostel and delivery of affordable housing schemes across the country—with less bureaucratic requirements under the new adopted process.” he added.

He emphasized that the new framework aligns with President Tinubu’s broader public procurement reforms, ensuring harmony across the government’s financial and investment systems.

“By decentralizing approvals, the government is supporting and unlocking investments opportunities through improved capital inflows, job creation, and faster project delivery—exactly what we need in this current economic climate.”

Dr. Ewalefoh stated that the ICRC will continue to promote, guide, facilitate and regulate the PPP ecosystem in the country, while collaborating with other agencies in the infrastructure ecosystem including the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI), Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) among others.

He enjoined MDAs as project owners and grantors to take advantage of the approved threshold and the new guidelines that will be issued by the Commission.

MDAs are encouraged to  embrace the utilization of PPPs for the delivery of critical infrastructure in delivering on the Renewed Hope Agenda of Mr. President.