Minister for Information, Culture and Tourism, Lai Mohammed has stated that it is unsuitable for the Nigerian government to remove fuel subsidies.
Mohammed, during a wide-ranging interview with Reuters on Monday, noted many other nations were introducing measures to help citizens cope with high oil prices.
Nigeria, which now imports its refined needs, had planned to remove fuel subsidies earlier this year. The move raised concerns with the International Monetary Fund.
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“When you consider the chaos, the social disharmony and … instability such an action (of abolishing subsidies) would facilitate, is it worth it? I don’t think so,” Mohammed said.
The nation suffers intermittent fuel shortages. It has raised its deficit forecast twice this year and increased borrowing to cover the cost of the subsidy.
Also, according to the sector regulator, the country’s petroleum production has fallen short of government targets, with $1 billion in revenue lost to crude oil theft in the first quarter of this year.
