Nigeria’s ambition to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030 (or shortly thereafter) is a centerpiece of the current administration’s “Renewed Hope” agenda.
Achieving this requires a massive shift from a consumption-based economy to one driven by production, digital infrastructure, and fiscal discipline.
Thus, as Nigeria navigates a complex mix of economic reforms, technological disruption, and global uncertainty, 2026 is shaping up as a defining year for policy execution and consolidation.
Having initiated several structural reforms across fiscal management, energy, digital economy, and governance, the focus of the Nigerian government is expected to shift from policy announcements to implementation, enforcement, and measurable outcomes.
Against a backdrop of revenue pressures, rising population demands, and accelerating digital transformation, and pre-elections year, government policies in 2026 will be driven by the need to stabilise the economy, unlock private-sector investment, and position Nigeria competitively within Africa’s evolving economic landscape.
Technology, data-driven governance, and institutional efficiency will increasingly serve as the backbone of these policy directions.
This report highlights the key policy areas the Nigerian government is likely to prioritise in 2026, examining their strategic intent, potential economic impact, and implications for businesses, investors, and citizens.
It provides a forward-looking view of how fiscal reform, digitalisation, infrastructure development, human capital investment, and sustainability initiatives are expected to shape Nigeria’s economic and social trajectory in the year ahead.
All things being equal, and assuming politics does not overshadow governance, Techeconomy examines the key policy implementations set to define Nigeria’s economy in 2026:
1. The 2025 Tax Reform Acts Implementation
The $1 trillion goal is unattainable without a significant increase in the tax-to-GDP ratio, which has historically been low in Nigeria.
Therefore, the most significant shift for the Nigerian economy is the full rollout of the four new Tax Acts.
Despite last-minute legal challenges in late December 2025, these laws are designed to consolidate Nigeria’s fragmented tax system.
Undoubtedly the most discussed legislative package of the year, this suite of four acts was designed to modernize and simplify the Nigerian tax system.
The major components of the Act:
- The Nigeria Tax Act: Consolidates various tax laws to reduce the burden of multiple taxation.
- The Nigeria Tax Administration Act: Harmonizes tax collection processes across federal and state levels.
- The Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Act: Officially renames and empowers the FIRS with broader administrative capabilities.
- Joint Revenue Board Establishment Act: Creates a framework for resolving disputes between federal and state tax authorities.
With the implementation, expect tighter enforcement of recently introduced tax reforms, including expanded tax base and improved compliance; increased use of digital tax administration systems, and clearer rules around VAT, company income tax, and digital services taxation.
These laws introduced a derivation-based VAT distribution model and famously exempted 97% of SMEs from corporate income tax, but majority will join move from the informal to formal sector.
We are expect NACCIMA, SMEDAN and other cluster bodies to work with the government on intensified awareness campaigns.
Impact:
- Businesses, especially Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and digital platforms, will face higher compliance expectations. Nigeria’s tax system will get better, particularly if the backend integrations work seamlessly.
- There could be more probing of President Bola Tinubu led government by the citizen regarding the Nigeria-France signed MoU on tax backend architecture deployments.
- Many will also be watching to see how the country’s first Tax Ombudsman will perform.
2. Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025
Nigeria’s new insurance framework, the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025, signed into law in August 2025 by President Bola Tinubu, replaces the 2003 Act to modernize regulation, strengthen financial resilience, safeguard policyholders, and drive digital transformation.
Key provisions of the NIIRA Act 2025 include higher capital requirements, expanded mandatory coverages such as Group Life for employers, stricter claims settlement standards, and integration of an ECOWAS motor insurance scheme.
Key Changes & Provisions contained in NIIRA Act:
Consolidation: It repeals and combines several old laws (Marine Insurance, Motor Vehicles, etc.) into one framework.
Capital Requirements: The Act significantly increased minimum capital for insurers (e.g., Life N15bn, General N25bn, Reinsurance N35bn) to ensure financial stability, with risk-based capital (RBC) also considered.
Mandatory Insurance: Expands compulsory policies, including for public buildings, government assets, and group life for all employees.
Consumer Protection: Aims for faster claims (zero tolerance for delays), clear policy delivery timelines (5 days for standard, 30 for complex), and protection against claim denial for non-delivery.
Digitization: It further introduces a modern, digital framework for efficiency and market access.
Market Conduct: Focuses on ethical practices, transparency, and better governance, with penalties for non-compliance.
ECOWAS Integration: Incorporates the regional Brown Card Scheme for motor insurance.
Impact:
- For Insurers: The NIIRA Act 2025 poses challenges in meeting recapitalization, but opportunities for growth and investment.
- For Consumers: If the Act is fully implemented, consumers should expect greater trust, faster claims, and broader access to insurance.
- For the Market: Potential for consolidation, increased foreign investment, and better global competitiveness.
3. Telecommunications: Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) Enforcement
Telecommunications infrastructure is the invisible engine driving Nigeria’s modern economy. Enforcing its protection under the CNI framework is not merely about safeguarding cables and towers, it is about:
- Protecting GDP growth
- Securing jobs
- Attracting investment
- Ensuring national competitiveness in a digital world
Following a year of severe service outages in cities like Abuja due to diesel supply bottlenecks and vandalism, 2026 could mark the enforcement phase of the CNI Executive Order.
- The Policy: Stricter legal protection for telecom assets (towers, fiber-optic cables).
For Nigeria, telecom CNI enforcement is economic policy, security policy, and development strategy rolled into one.
The Impact:
- A decrease in the 30-43 daily fiber cuts reported in 2025. Security agencies will have a specialized mandate to protect these “arteries of the digital economy,” leading to improved Quality of Service (QoS) and lower maintenance costs for MNOs.
4. National Broadband Plan (NBP) 2.0 & Project BRIDGE
With the original NBP ending in 2025 at approximately 50.58% penetration (missing the 70% target), 2026 introduces the successor plan.
- The Core: Commercialization of Project BRIDGE, a 90,000km open-access national fiber backbone. This project is key towards actualizing Nigeria’s national broadband plan.
In 2024, the Federal Executive Council meeting approved the launch of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) that will support the deployment of an additional 90,000km of fibre optic cable across the country.
The project aims to increase Nigeria’s fibre optic cable capacity from around 35,000 km to 125,000 km, making it Africa’s third-longest terrestrial fibre optic backbone behind South Africa and Egypt.
The government has secured substantial part of the $2 billion (approximately ₦3 trillion) project.
The Impact:
- Lowering wholesale bandwidth costs for Internet Service Providers (ISPs), which should theoretically lead to cheaper data for consumers and bridge the “digital divide” in rural areas, amongst other expected impacts
5. EV Infrastructure and Green Energy Incentives
Aligning with global climate goals and high local fuel costs, 2026 will see the implementation of incentives for Electric Vehicle (EV) assembly and charging infrastructure.
The Move: Companies like LUG West Africa are leading this charge. The company plans to roll out 250+ EV charging hubs across in major cities.
The Impact:
- A shift in urban planning requirements for new real estate and public works to include mandatory EV charging points and energy-efficient lighting.
6. Data Sovereignty and Local Hosting Mandates
Following the 2025 debates surrounding the reliability of local web hosting, the government is expected to tighten regulations on where “State Data” and “Sensitive Financial Data” are stored.
The Policy: New guidelines could emerge from NITDA, working critical partners like the NCC and NDPC, requiring critical sectors to utilize local data centres.
Still under data sovereignty, the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) will be tested.
While the parent act was passed earlier, 2025 saw the passage of the subsidiary implementation regulations that gave the law “teeth.”
The Focus: Mandatory localization of “sensitive national data” and stricter penalties for data breaches.
The Impact:
- A surge in investment for Tier III and Tier IV data centers in Lagos and Abuja, as the industry fights back against the “mischaracterization” of local hosting capabilities. There could be a spark of debate between the tech industry and the media regarding the reliability of local infrastructure versus international cloud services. The data protection law might be tested with regards integration of citizens’ data (BVN, NIN) in the tax ecosystem to generate Tax Identification Numbers (Tax TINs).
7. The Electricity (Amendment) Act 2025
Nigeria’s Electricity (Amendment) Act, starting with the 2023 constitutional amendement with sweeping provisions to overhaul power sector governance, strengthen regulation, and attract investment, its sets the stage for a pivotal 2026 where policy turns into action across regulation, competition, infrastructure, and consumer outcomes.
The law expands NERC’s independence and enforcement powers. In 2026, expect stronger regulatory oversight of tariffs, licensing and performance standards; clearer, transparent processes for tariff review to balance investor returns and consumer protection and enforcement of service quality benchmarks for distribution companies (DisCos).
The Act accelerates market liberalisation beyond generation and into distribution. In 2026, we expect to see Wholesale Electricity Market (WEM) mechanisms to deepen.
Also, independent power producers (IPPs) and private investors will have clearer entry paths, and new market segments such as ancillary services, capacity markets, may begin trading.
On consumer rights and service standards, which are central to the amendments, we expect NERC to ensure the enforcement of Service Level Agreements (SLAs) between DisCos and customers.
The law strengthens planning and coordination among the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), NERC, and market operators to implement grid code revisions; tighter monitoring of generation reserve margins, and investments in transmission infrastructure prioritised for national reliability.
Another major objective is to unlock capital for generation, transmission, and distribution for clearer framework for public–private partnerships (PPPs), improved contracts and risk allocation for IPP projects and access to long‑term financing as investors gain confidence in legal certainty, amongst others like renewable and off-grid development could gain traction.
The Impact:
- In 2025, we saw the first wave of “State Power Markets” emerge, reducing the total reliance on the National Grid and encouraging investments in mini-grids and renewable energy assembly plants. In 2026, more States will go that route to ensure steady electricity provisioning.
The Big Picture
By 2026, Nigeria’s policy direction will be less about bold announcements and more about execution, digital enforcement, and economic discipline.
The success of these policies will ultimately depend politicking allowing institutional capacity, technology adoption, and the ability to maintain public trust during reform implementation.
