2.55% GDP growth below population surge, says MAN

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria has said there is not much to cheer about the recently released Nigeria’s economic growth which rose to 2.55 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2019, according to a report by the National Bureau of Statistics.

It was the nation’s highest quarterly growth since the 2016 recession.

In the report, the country’s gross domestic product growth rate for the fourth quarter of 2019 rose by 2.55 per cent (year-on-year) in real terms compared to 2.28 per cent in the preceding quarter.  It equally beat the International Monetary Fund’s projection of 2.1 GDP growth.

The statement read in part, “It is positive due to the fact that it moved a little farther from the negative region and progressive because the nominal figure is trending upward at an increasing rate.

“The real GDP growth rate is impressive in view of the fact that the fourth quarter record represents the highest quarterly growth performance since the 2016, but largely it is below the desirable because the 2.55 per cent growth is still below the population growth rate of 2.6 per cent.”

MAN further stated that it was gratifying to have a full year figure of the real GDP of 2.27 per cent in 2019 when compared with the 1.91 per cent of 2018, which it added undoubtedly revealed a promising but cautious trajectory of improving economic performance.

The association, however, said that it was doubtful that this would be sustained in the coming quarters because of the prevailing unfriendly operating environment.

MAN lamented that the manufacturing sector only recorded a meagre growth in the period under review and the sector’s contribution to the GDP remained stagnant at 8.74 per cent.

The body said, “The statistical narrative of manufacturing growth as reported by NBS showed that the sector sustained positive but meagre growth of 0.14 per cent when you compare the reported 1.24 per cent growth in the fourth quarter of year 2019 with the 1.1 per cent recorded in the third quarter of the same year.

“Manufacturing contribution to GDP rather remained stagnant at 8.74 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2019 as recorded in the third quarter, a figure that is slightly below the 8.86 per cent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2018.