Nigeria Presidency Rejects Atiku's N7.98 Trillion Oil Windfall Claim

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar alleged that the Nigerian government had received an unaccounted oil windfall of N7.98 trillion. The Presidency, through Special Adviser Bayo Onanuga, said the figure is analytically flawed and that no such windfall exists. Onanuga explained that the calculation ignored production costs, the share of crude retained by oil companies, forward‑contract hedges and the actual daily output, which fell short of forecasts despite higher Brent prices.

The statement also defended the Tinubu administration’s economic reforms, noting that Nigeria’s dollar‑denominated GDP has risen from about $253 billion to $377 billion and that the debt‑to‑GDP ratio remains below 40 percent. The debt‑service‑to‑revenue ratio has dropped from nearly 100 percent in December 2022 to under 60 percent, and the removal of fuel subsidies has contributed to fiscal consolidation.