By Omoniyi M. Akinsiju
Introduction
We have followed with concern the bewildering polemics with which Nigeria’s political opposition is deliberately scandalising the public space to demean the economic reforms being implemented by the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led federal administration as ill-considered and inconsequential.
From our standpoint, we surmise that the opposition’s propagation of bellicose intent against the federal government’s reforms lacks empirical validation and is generally pivoted on abysmal, commonplace, and sentimental generalisations.
Contrary to the frequent public espousal of reform failure by the opposition, our reading of the national economic trajectory since 2023 strongly indicates otherwise. While we acknowledge the inevitability of some challenges inherent in the implementation of any body of reform policies, we assert that the Tinubu policies have, in significant ways, accomplished the first purpose of a sovereign’s economic rejuvenation: the resuscitation and strengthening of the real sector of the economy.
Earning and Profitability Resurgence in the Real Sector
This speaks to the resurgence of revenue and profitability in privately managed companies, with far-reaching implications for Domestic Product (GDP), employment, poverty reduction, and wealth creation, leading to a state of general prosperity from now on.
Our affirmation of the recovery of the nation’s critical real sector is predicated on the framework of market reality, which represents the actual, current conditions of the marketplace, including consumer behaviour, competitor actions, and economic constraints, rather than the subsidy conditions prevalent during the years before the commencement of the implementation of the reform policies in 2023.
Our submission is corroborated by verifiable data that profiles the performance of quoted companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and artisanal enterprises in the informal sector.
The sweeping economic reforms that initially triggered economic volatility are now translating into stronger revenues and earnings for many firms. This impressive change in tides in both the top and bottom lines of companies in the nation’s real sector is enabled by improving macroeconomic conditions and a more stable foreign exchange market. These positive indicators have elevated the Naira to Africa’s second-best-performing currency against the dollar year-to-date.
To examine the observed performances, we took a sample of 20 blue-chip companies listed on the NGX. They earned N27.8 trillion in revenue in the 2025 financial year. This represents an increase of 28.7 per cent when compared to the N21.62 trillion reported in the corresponding period of 2024.
Highlights of Top Performers
Top performers on the list of high-revenue-generating companies include Guinness Nigeria Plc, which reported a profit after tax of N41 billion in its audited 18-month results ending on December 31, 2025, marking its first return to profitability since 2023.
MTN Nigeria Communications Plc delivered one of the most impressive turnarounds, posting a profit before tax of N1.7 trillion in 2025 compared to a N550.3 billion loss in 2024.
Airtel Africa Plc also returned to profitability, with a profit after tax of $328 million, reversing a $89 million loss recorded in 2024.
Nigerian Breweries has returned to profitability after two years. The company recorded a 68.9 per cent increase in revenue to N383.6 billion, primarily driven by better-than-expected volume growth, a notable rise from N222.17 billion in 2024 and N123.31 billion in 2023.
International Breweries Plc also returned to profitability, reporting a pre-tax profit of N88.9 billion in its 2025 audited results, compared with a N111.8 billion loss in the prior year. Dangote Cement reported revenue of N4.31 trillion, up 20.28 per cent from N3.58 trillion in 2024.
Seplat Energy announced N4.14 Trillion in revenue in 2025, about a 150.4 per cent increase over the N1.65 trillion reported in 2024. Unilever Nigeria Plc’s gross profit rose 62 per cent to N90 billion, while net profit doubled to N32 billion, up from N15 billion in the same period in 2024.
Conclusion
We can generalise these remarkable performances to companies across all sectors of the economy. Consequently, this aggregates to a state of buoyancy by private-led companies and sufficiently guarantees the employment of about 9.64 million Nigerians in the private sector, with an implied increase in retained earnings that would, in turn, crystallise in business expansion. This will also reflect in higher GDP numbers for the year.
In addition, these higher-than-expected earnings rebound of many listed corporates has unlocked a total of N1.7 trillion in payouts to shareholders, marking the strongest rise in recent years.
The rebound in business returns is not limited to companies in the formal sector only. The figures in the ubiquitous informal sector, where the majority of Nigeria’s workforce is engaged, also saw a high 65 per cent jump in revenue, according to a Moniepoint 2025 survey.
We note, in conclusion, that the strong earnings cycle reflects how companies have adjusted to the new policy environment through pricing power, operational efficiency, and expansion into new revenue streams.
Omoniyi M. Akinsiju, PhD
Chairman,
Independent Media and Policy Initiative (IMPI)
April 28, 2026
