Tinubu Names GTB Co-Founder Fola Adeola To Lead New Petroleum Reform Taskforce.
Nigeria’s petroleum sector is set for a major restructure as President Tinubu approves a new Value Optimisation Task Force. Per Bayo Onanuga, the team will be responsible for designing the country’s next phase of oil and gas reforms.
Onanuga also announced that Mr Fola Adeola, co-founder of Guaranty Trust Bank and founder and chairman of the Fate Foundation, is the Task Force’s chairman and expected to coordinate the group’s work to ensure timely delivery of its mandate.
The task force will be supported by a group of industry experts: Ademola Adeyemi-Bero, Osagie Okunbor , Abubakar Suleiman, Adaeze Aguele, Farouk Gumel, Phillipa Osakwe-Okoye and Seyi Bella . Mofoluwasho Fadayomi has been named the group's secretary.
This high-level, time-bound working group is mandated to create actionable reform blueprints. Their goal is to unify current reforms, attract new capital to the petroleum sector, and cement Nigeria’s status as a top-tier destination for global energy investment. According to the statement, this initiative underscores President Tinubu’s resolve to build a competitive and transparent oil industry that fosters long-term economic resilience and industrial growth.
“It will operate as a technical reform body rather than a representative committee, engaging industry operators, regulators, investors, and civil society as consultees while focusing on actionable policy design and implementation strategies.” The Presidency said.
The Taskforce will report directly to the President and provide monthly progress memoranda, while an interim report will be submitted after three months and the final outputs are expected within six months of inauguration.
President Tinubu expects the Task Force to deliver three major reform blueprints.
“One of the deliverables is the Implementation Toolkit for Immediate Structural Fixes – including draft legislative amendments, executive instruments, and institutional restructuring proposals.
“The second deliverable is the Capital & Liquidity Acceleration Blueprint, aimed at unlocking $5–10 billion in sectoral liquidity while safeguarding Nigeria’s sovereign interests.
“The third blueprint will focus on the National Energy Transformation Strategy – a ten-year roadmap with measurable targets for production, foreign exchange earnings, GDP contribution, and cost competitiveness.”
To ensure the reform's success, the President directed all relevant MDAs and institutions to submit inventories of their ongoing projects to the task force. Furthermore, all existing energy sector committees must now synchronize their work programs and reporting lines with this new executive group.