How Nigeria’s economy cratered in President Tinubu’s first year ( www.semafor.com )

LAGOS — Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu vowed to usher in an era of renewed hope when he was inaugurated into office a year ago. Twelve months later, the prices of food and fuel have doubled, driving increasingly loud discontent.

Tinubu’s first anniversary, on May 29, comes as the country is set to slip two places to fourth on the ranking of Africa’s largest economies, according to the IMF.

The president had promised to deliver higher economic growth, a million new jobs and security reforms. On his first day, he removed a decades-long subsidy on petrol that had made it relatively affordable for consumers. He charged the central bank’s new leadership to pursue a market-driven exchange rate. The bank has hiked the benchmark lending rate by 7.5 percentage points since February to tame inflation.