Edun Pushes Global Financial Reforms To Close $5tn SDG Gap

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun has called for stronger unity among countries of the Global South to address rising fragility in global economic growth.

Edun made the call on Thursday at the Intergovernmental Group of 24 (G-24) Technical Group Meeting (TGM) 2026 held in Abuja.

He said the global economic environment was currently defined by profound uncertainties, systemic vulnerabilities, and an ongoing contest between fragmentation and integration, developments he noted were hampering trade and debt sustainability.

According to him, the recurring theme of fragility, whether in growth, trade flows, debt sustainability, or institutional capacity reflects the precarious state of the global economy.

The minister stressed that the TGM was not merely a routine technical engagement but an opportunity to reshape development trajectories for countries of the Global South at a time when global risks were converging faster than institutions could respond.

Citing findings from the World Economic Forum Global Risk Survey, Edun said half of the experts surveyed expected global conditions to remain volatile over the next two years, while 57 per cent foresaw instability over the next decade. Only one per cent anticipated a calm global environment.

He added that the 2026 Global Risk Report identified economic confrontation in the form of tariffs, sanctions, investment restrictions, and strategic decoupling as the most likely trigger of global crises.

“Deepening fragmentation can reduce global output by up to two percentage points and shrink global trade by more than two per cent, with developing and emerging markets bearing the brunt.

“Africa, despite accounting for 17 per cent of the world’s population, contributes only about three per cent of global trade and roughly 2.5 per cent of global output. Further fragmentation can only worsen this imbalance,” he said.

Edun highlighted the fiscal paradox confronting Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs), noting that over a quarter of them had lost access to international capital markets, while more than half were showing signs of debt distress.

He said debt service payments in recent years had outweighed foreign direct investment and Official Development Assistance inflows to many developing countries, limiting fiscal space for critical sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, and climate resilience.

The minister called for reforms to global financial structures to close the widening Sustainable Development Goals financing gap, now estimated at between four trillion and five trillion dollars annually.

On Nigeria’s domestic reforms, Edun said the Federal Government had, over the past two and a half years, implemented politically complex but necessary measures to restore macroeconomic stability and correct structural distortions.

“These measures lay the groundwork for a more competitive, transparent, and resilient economy. Nigeria now stands at the threshold of consolidation, which demands the same discipline and policy consistency that underpinned the stabilisation phase,” he said.

He noted that early outcomes of the reforms had gained global recognition and boosted investor confidence, particularly in the oil sector, where major operators had responded positively to new incentives.

Edun said Nigeria was deliberately shifting from a debt-driven growth model to an investment-led framework anchored on domestic reforms, private capital mobilisation, and diversified financing instruments.

“To achieve its target of seven per cent annual growth, the country requires an investment-to-GDP ratio of about 30 per cent. The private sector is expected to play a dominant role through structured public-private partnerships and asset optimisation,” he said.

He added that the government was advancing comprehensive revenue reforms focused on efficiency, transparency, automation, and technology-driven compliance as part of efforts to strengthen domestic resource mobilisation.