Dr. Ijeomah Linus Arodiogbu, a medical doctor, public health expert, Professor of Health Economics and Planning and the All Progressive Congress, National Vice Chairmam South East, has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s consumer-credit reforms, describing the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CrediCorp) as a major intervention capable of expanding financial inclusion and helping working Nigerians cope with economic pressures.

Prof. Arodiogbu, who is also the Chairman of the Governing Board of David Umahi Federal University Teaching Hospital, Ebonyi State, said the initiative demonstrates the administration’s commitment to building an economy in which access to finance is not restricted to a small segment of the population.

CrediCorp’s official mandate is to remove structural, market and policy barriers to consumer credit and accelerate access to credit for 50 per cent of working Nigerians by 2030. Rather than operating primarily as a conventional retail lender, the corporation works to catalyse the credit market through capital, guarantees, partnerships and credit infrastructure.

The scale of the intervention is already significant. At the inauguration of the CrediCorp Board in February 2026, Vice President Kashim Shettima disclosed that the corporation had disbursed more than ₦37 billion in consumer credit to over 200,000 Nigerians, with more than half of the beneficiaries accessing formal credit for the first time.

The figures represent an average of more than ₦185,000 in credit per beneficiary, based on the reported ₦37 billion and 200,000 beneficiaries. The initiative has supported access to financing for items and services including locally assembled vehicles, solar energy systems, digital devices and home improvements.

According to Arodiogbu, the importance of CrediCorp goes beyond the amount of money disbursed. He said its broader significance lies in developing a formal credit culture and infrastructure that can enable millions of Nigerians to access affordable financing responsibly.

The corporation has identified credit infrastructure as a key part of its mandate, including efforts to address information gaps between lenders and borrowers. Government officials have also linked the initiative to the development of a stronger national credit ecosystem capable of supporting responsible borrowing and lending.

The intervention comes against the background of continuing pressure on household budgets. The National Bureau of Statistics’ July 2026 Consumer Price Index report is the latest monthly inflation dataset available, while the NBS currently reports headline inflation at 15.43 per cent and food inflation at 20.31 per cent under the rebased CPI series.

Arodiogbu stated that in such an environment, access to appropriately structured credit can help households spread the cost of important purchases instead of requiring them to make large one-off payments from already-stretched incomes.

He said responsible consumer credit can also support productivity when it enables workers, entrepreneurs and families to acquire productive or life-enhancing assets such as transportation, digital equipment, renewable-energy systems and housing-related improvements.

The professor said CrediCorp should also be viewed within the broader economic strategy of the Tinubu administration, which seeks to strengthen domestic production, deepen financial inclusion and stimulate economic activity.

He noted that financing locally manufactured goods can create a multiplier effect: consumers gain access to essential products, manufacturers receive stronger demand, businesses expand production, and employment opportunities can increase.

CrediCorp has specifically pursued initiatives designed to support locally assembled products. Its Youth Credit Initiative, for example, was designed to combine financial literacy with access to affordable credit, while its NYSC IGNITE component targets more than 400,000 corps members annually.

Arodiogbu said such programmes should be complemented by stronger financial literacy, consumer protection and responsible borrowing practices to ensure that increased access to credit translates into sustainable economic benefits rather than excessive household indebtedness.

He further pointed to housing finance as another area where the administration is attempting to address the financing gap facing Nigerian households.

The Federal Government reported on August 29, 2026, that the Ministry of Finance Incorporated Real Estate Investment Fund (MREIF) had deployed ₦140 billion through 21 financial institutions, supporting 2,018 mortgages across 27 states. The corresponding figures in June were ₦128 billion, 1,859 families and 25 states.

Arodiogbu said the combination of consumer credit, housing finance, employment initiatives, skills development and support for domestic production represents a broader attempt to strengthen household economic resilience.

The APC National Vice Chairman also cited Nigeria’s recent economic performance as an indication that reforms are beginning to generate measurable changes in some sectors.

According to the NBS, Nigeria’s real GDP grew by 3.89 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2026, compared with 3.13 per cent in Q1 2025. Real manufacturing-sector growth stood at 3.29 per cent, while the non-oil sector accounted for 96.08 per cent of real GDP during the quarter.

Arodiogbu said these figures should be interpreted alongside the continuing challenges confronting households, stressing that macroeconomic improvement must ultimately translate into better living conditions, stronger purchasing power and greater economic opportunities for ordinary Nigerians.

He urged Nigerians to take advantage of legitimate government-supported financial and empowerment programmes while observing the principles of responsible borrowing.

According to him, government interventions can achieve greater impact when citizens, financial institutions, manufacturers, entrepreneurs and development partners participate actively in the emerging economic ecosystem.

Arodiogbu maintained that CrediCorp represents more than a credit-disbursement programme, describing it as part of an institutional effort to change the structure of financial inclusion in Nigeria.

He said the long-term objective should be an economy where a worker with a verifiable income, a young entrepreneur with a viable business idea or a family seeking essential household assets can access transparent and affordable financing without being excluded by traditional barriers.

He described this as essential to ensuring that the Renewed Hope Agenda‘s economic reforms are ultimately measured not only by financial and macroeconomic statistics, but by their impact on the daily lives, productivity and economic dignity of Nigerians.