• Claims N266bn net outflow signals investors’ loss of confidence
•Accuses FG of crowding out private sector as domestic borrowing rises
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has described the N266.07 billion net outflow of foreign portfolio investment from the Nigerian equities market between January and July 2026 as evidence of a growing crisis of confidence in the economic management of President Bola Tinubu.
Atiku, in a statement issued yesterday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Mr. Phrank Shaibu, argued that the movement of capital out of the country contradicted the federal government’s claims that its economic reforms were restoring investor confidence and strengthening the economy.
According to data from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) cited in the statement, foreign investors brought N513.36 billion into the Nigerian equities market during the seven-month period but withdrew N779.43 billion, resulting in a net outflow of N266.07 billion.
The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) stated that foreign outflows exceeded inflows in every month between January and July, noting that the figure was about 11.7 times higher than the N22.68 billion net outflow recorded in the corresponding period of 2023.
“This is not merely an investment statistic. It is a confidence verdict on the Tinubu economy. Capital does not listen to government propaganda. Capital votes with its feet,” Atiku stated.
He accused the Tinubu administration of presiding over an economy in which foreign investors were withdrawing capital while local businesses were increasingly being shut out of the domestic credit market by the government’s rising borrowing.
Atiku also referred to reports that the federal government’s domestic borrowing had risen by 90.5 per cent to N24.7 trillion within eight months, while credit to government was growing substantially faster than lending to the private sector.
“So the picture is now painfully clear: Tinubu’s government is crowding Nigerian businesses out of the domestic credit market while foreign investors are taking their money and heading for the exit.
“Local businesses are suffocating. Foreign capital is fleeing. Government borrowing is exploding. Food prices have skyrocketed. Transportation costs are crushing families. Yet, the same administration continues to congratulate itself on economic reforms,” he said.
The former presidential candidate maintained that an economy could not be described as recovering when businesses struggled to access affordable credit, manufacturers faced rising operating costs and households continued to experience declining purchasing power.
He argued that investors were more concerned with the underlying fundamentals of the economy, including policy consistency, inflation, predictable regulation, purchasing power and the ability to earn sustainable real returns.
According to Atiku, the federal government must focus on restoring confidence and creating conditions that would allow private businesses to drive growth rather than relying excessively on borrowing.
“Nigeria requires an economic policy that restores confidence, lowers the cost of doing business, makes energy and transportation affordable, encourages production and allows the private sector, rather than government borrowing, to drive growth.
“You cannot borrow the private sector dry, impoverish consumers and then advertise yourself to the world as an investment destination,” he added.
Atiku said the difference between the economic approach he advocates and that of the current administration was the emphasis on private-sector production and household affordability rather than what he described as excessive government consumption.
He insisted that the continued withdrawal of foreign portfolio investors from the Nigerian market represented a clear response to the country’s economic fundamentals, maintaining that government pronouncements alone would not be sufficient to attract and retain investment.