Taiwo Oyedele Replaces Wale Edun as New Finance Minister

President Bola Tinubu has carried out a cabinet reshuffle, elevating Taiwo Oyedele to the position of Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy and removing Wale Edun, the erstwhile minister, from the roles to enhance the government’s ability to deliver on its promises.

Also, the President removed Ahmed Musa Dangiwa from his role in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development and named Muttaqha Rabe Darma as the new nominee for that ministry.

A formal statement from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation confirmed the cabinet reshuffle on Tuesday in a move aimed at strengthening the nation’s financial leadership and housing sector.

As earlier predicted by INSIDEBUSINESS, the President relieved Edun, whom the presidency has been searching for his successor, on the grounds of ill health.

As part of the new appointments, Taiwo Oyedele has moved up from Minister of State to become the new Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy.  The official memo, signed by Senator George Akume, directs the outgoing ministers to finish the handover process by Thursday, 23 April 2026.

According to the government, these changes are necessary for better teamwork and more effective governance. Akume explained that the President made these choices to achieve “more impactful delivery on the economy to Nigerians, through the Renewed Hope Agenda.” The President exercised his constitutional powers to ensure the cabinet reshuffle helps the country move forward. He also thanked the departing ministers for their hard work and wished them well in the future.

Government officials noted that this process of refreshing the team will be a continuous effort. By bringing in new leaders like Taiwo Oyedele, the administration hopes to create a more efficient system for all citizens. All eyes are now on the new ministers to see how they will handle their significant responsibilities.

Meanwhile, the outgoing Finance Minister, Wale Edun, thanked President Tinubu for the opportunity to serve Nigeria and the people, starting as head of the Presidential Transition Committee, as Special Adviser on Monetary Policy, and later, as the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy.

“It has been an honour to contribute to the implementation of the administration’s economic agenda at a pivotal moment in Nigeria’s journey since Mr President assumed office, with our country facing difficult economic circumstances”, Edun said.

“Under his leadership, we have worked collectively across government to advance critical reforms that stabilised the macroeconomic environment, strengthened fiscal sustainability, and laid the foundation for inclusive and long-term growth”.

Key results of these efforts, according to the outgoing minister include growth improving from a rate of 2 per cent to over 4 per cent, and inflation falling from 35 per cent to 15 per cent.

These outcomes, Edun said were driven by a shared commitment to restoring public trust and enabling faster and inclusive growth, through greater investor confidence and improved economic coordination.

Edun’s tenure will be remembered as the one during which the country jettisoned the budget cycle from January to December, and was running two annual budgets, 2024 and 2025, concurrently while the capital component of the 2025 budget was also extended to November 2026 while budget 2026 is also running.

During his tenure also, the nation missed its revenue target while indebtedness ballooned to N159.27 trillion by December 2025 from N33 trillion in 2020, highlighting the government’s growing reliance on borrowing to bridge fiscal gaps. Debt rose from N46.25 trillion in 2022 to N97.34 trillion in 2023, effectively doubling within a year, before climbing further to N145 trillion in 2024 and N159.27 trillion in 2025.