By Omobayo Azeez
Amidst multiplying socio-economic contradictions that shrank the Nigerian economy by -6.10 per cent in the second quarter of this year, the Information and Communications Sector (ICT) and its telecoms subsector have exuded strong performances.
The latest gross domestic product (GDP) report released Thursday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that, while the telecoms segment of the ICT sector advanced by 18.10 per cent, the entire sector lifted the economy by 17.83 per cent.
The ICT sector is composed of the four activities of telecommunications and information services; publishing; motion picture, sound recording, and music production; and broadcasting.
In nominal terms, in the second quarter of 2020, the sector shrank by –1.15 per cent year-on-year (YoY), or –41.70 per cent points decrease from the 40.54 per cent growth recorded in the same quarter of 2019, and –10.09 per cent points lower than rate recorded in the preceding quarter.
The Quarter on Quarter (QoQ) growth rate recorded in the second quarter of 2020 was 30.12 per cent. The Information and Communications sector contributed 14.06 per cent to total nominal GDP in Q2 2020, the report has shown.
This is lower than the rate of 13.83 per cent recorded in the same quarter of 2019 but higher than the 10.31 per cent it contributed in the preceding quarter.
According to the latest statistics, in the period under review, the sector recorded a growth rate of 15.09 per cent in real terms, year on year.
“Compared to the rate recorded in the corresponding period of 2019, this was an increase of 6.09 per cent points,” the report read.
On QoQ basis, the sector exhibited a growth of 20.32 per cent in real terms. Out of total real GDP, the ICT sector contributed 17.83 per cent in the 2020 second quarter, higher than in the same quarter of the previous year in which it represented 14.55 per cent and the preceding quarter, in which it represented 14.07 per cent.
According to a further breakdown of the report, the ICT sector grew by 15.09 per cent in the Q2 period from 9.99 per cent in Q1 2020 and 9.01 per cent in Q2 2019.
“Telecommunications and Information Services under ICT sector grew by 18.10 per cent in Q2 2020 from 9.71 per cent in Q1 2020 and 11.34 per cent in Q2 2019.
“Publishing under the Information and Communication sector contracted by -18.35 per cent in Q2 2020 from 0.10 per cent in Q1 2020 and 4.60 per cent in Q2 2019.
“Motion pictures, sound recording and music production under ICT sector contracted by -4.60 per cent in Q2 2020 from 0.33 per cent in Q1 2020 and – 2.37 per cent in Q2 2019,” the report read.
