Nigeria’s future in your hands, Cardoso tells young leaders

*Says credibility is Nigeria’s strongest currency
*Stability remains cardinal to inclusive growth
*Openness, accountability animate anticipation astatine Lagos Business School—Pro. Olayinka

By Babajide Komolafe

Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, has charged Nigerian youths to hole for the work of gathering a credible, stable, and inclusive nation, stressing that the country’s aboriginal rests successful their hands.

Cardoso besides urged youths to spot themselves arsenic custodians of the country’s future, stressing that credibility, stability, and inclusiveness volition find whether Nigeria rises oregon stumbles.

Delivering the inaugural CBN Governor’s Lecture Series astatine the Lagos Business School (LBS), themed “Next Generation Leadership successful Monetary Policy and Nation Building,” Cardoso told an assemblage of students, academics, and concern leaders that Nigeria’s youthful colonisation is its top asset. “With a median property of 18, Nigeria is 1 of the youngest countries globally,” helium said. “You—the adjacent generation—will clasp the pen, oregon the integer device, to constitute Nigeria’s story.”

He besides urged students and young professionals to clasp credibility, integer transformation, and inclusiveness arsenic guiding principles.

Credibility arsenic currency

Reflecting connected his aboriginal days successful bureau successful 2023, Cardoso recalled inheriting an system successful distress. Inflation had peaked adjacent 35 percent, reserves were strained, and capitalist assurance had collapsed. More daunting, the Bank faced a verified overseas speech backlog exceeding $7 billion.
“Credibility means keeping promises, adjacent erstwhile it is tough,” helium declared. “We could not locomotion distant from existing commitments. We had to wide the backlog to support Nigeria’s integrity.”

Cardoso explained that aft a forensic audit, the Bank settled the obligations, a determination that reassured planetary investors. He highlighted different transparency measures, including publishing audited reserves, releasing the Bank’s fiscal statements, and holding unrecorded post-MPC briefings. “For america astatine the Central Bank, credibility is everything,” helium stressed.

Stability and inclusive growth

Cardoso warned that nary federation tin thrive without stability. “Without stability, the things you are asking astir cannot happen. Serious investors—big oregon small—will not perpetrate if they fearfulness losing money,” helium said. He cited caller progress: ostentation moderating to 20 percent, GDP expanding by 4.2 percent successful Q2, superior flows rebounding, and reserves stabilising supra $42 billion. He added that fiscal inclusion has risen from 56 percent successful 2020 to implicit 64 percent successful 2025, portion slope recapitalisation is underway to fortify resilience.

“Stability is our job. It is the instauration connected which inclusive maturation indispensable beryllium built,” helium told the audience, pledging that the CBN would stay disciplined and forward-looking.

A level of hope

In her invited remarks, LBS Dean, Professor Olayinka David-West, described the lecture arsenic much than an world exercise. “It is simply a fulfillment of the Governor’s pledge of transparency and a span linking policymakers, concern leaders, and civilian society,” she said.

She urged students not to beryllium passive listeners. “Ask questions, situation the presumption quo. Nigeria belongs to each of us. Through progressive participation, we tin signifier a aboriginal of liable leadership.”
Looking ahead

Cardoso concluded with a connection of resilience. “You are the astir mobile, astir connected, and astir originative procreation the satellite has ever seen. Stay the people and thin into challenges with courage. Nigeria’s communicative is inactive being written—and it is you who volition constitute the adjacent chapter.”

The station Nigeria’s aboriginal successful your hands, Cardoso tells young leaders appeared archetypal connected Vanguard News.