The Independent Media and Policy Initiative (IMPI) has challenged all presidential candidates in the 2027 general election to make a $1 trillion Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2031 a central and measurable target of their economic manifestos.
In a policy statement signed by its Chairman, Dr Niyi Akinsiju, the think tank said candidates should move beyond campaign rhetoric and present detailed, numbers-driven plans showing how their proposed administrations would grow Nigeria’s economy to the $1 trillion mark within four years.
IMPI described the target as a benchmark for assessing competing economic visions, arguing that an economy of that size would provide a stronger foundation for attracting investment, creating productive employment and addressing multidimensional poverty.
The group said achieving the target would require Nigeria to move beyond dependence on retail trade and crude oil extraction, with greater emphasis on industrialisation, maritime infrastructure, agro-processing and digital technology.
According to IMPI, its proposed strategy includes activating the country’s five port corridors, developing agro-processing clusters across Northern Nigeria and expanding digital technology hubs in urban centres.
It said these interventions could help shift a significant proportion of Nigeria’s informal workforce into formal, tax compliant and higher productivity employment.
“An economy cannot be built on retail trade or raw oil extraction alone; it requires deep water industrialisation,” the group said.
IMPI also urged presidential candidates to publish sector by sector capital allocation models showing the sources of funding, investment requirements and policies they would deploy to achieve the target.
“The national economic debate cannot be won by opposition to hardship alone; a superior vision for prosperity must win it,” the think tank said.
The group’s position comes amid renewed debate over the pace of Nigeria’s economic growth and the feasibility of reaching the trillion-dollar benchmark.
IMPI cited recent economic indicators, including real GDP growth of 4.43 per cent in the second quarter of 2026, as evidence of improving economic activity. The National Bureau of Statistics’ Q2 2026 GDP report confirms the 4.43 per cent real growth rate.
The think tank also attributed the recent economic performance partly to reforms including fuel subsidy removal and foreign-exchange market reforms, arguing that these measures had created a foundation for faster expansion.
IMPI further argued that Nigeria’s economy was valued at about $377.37 billion following the rebasing of the national accounts and that the gap between the current size of the economy and the $1 trillion target should be addressed through sustained investment and structural transformation.
The group said the responsibility now rested with all presidential candidates to explain how they would achieve the proposed benchmark rather than simply criticising existing economic conditions.
“If a presidential candidate claims a faster route to a $1 trillion valuation, he should outline the specific fiscal policies, trade mechanisms, and deregulation models he will deploy to attract the massive quantum of private global capital required,” IMPI said.
The think tank’s call also comes as the Federal Government pursues its own trillion-dollar economic ambition. The Ministry of Finance has said achieving the target would require sustained annual GDP growth of between 10 and 12 per cent, underscoring the scale of expansion required.
IMPI therefore urged voters and the media to focus the 2027 economic debate on measurable targets, funding models and implementation strategies, rather than what it described as personal attacks, political grievances and vague campaign promises.
