The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has forecasted that global economic growth will stabilize at 3.2 percent for both 2024 and 2025, while signaling a slowdown for Nigeria’s economy.
This projection was announced during the launch of the World Economic Outlook report in Washington, D.C., by Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas, the IMF’s economic counsellor and director of the research department.
Gourinchas noted that while inflation is decreasing, the global economy continues to demonstrate resilience. He mentioned that the United States is expected to experience a cooling down, while other advanced economies are projected to rebound.
In emerging markets and developing economies, the report highlights that disruptions in commodity production and shipping particularly in the oil sector along with conflicts, civil unrest, and extreme weather events, have led to revised growth outlooks for regions including the Middle East, Central Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa. However, emerging Asia received an upgrade in its growth forecast, driven by surging demand for semiconductors and electronics, fueled by significant investments in artificial intelligence.
Despite the positive outlook for emerging Asia, the IMF projected Nigeria’s growth rate for 2024 at just 2.9 percent, a downgrade from 3.1 percent in July and 3.3 percent in April. Jean-Marc Natal, division chief of the IMF’s research department, attributed this downward revision to insecurity and flooding that have significantly impacted the agricultural sector and oil production.
Although Nigeria’s GDP grew by 3.19 percent in the second quarter of 2024, the oil sector contributed only 5.7 percent to the overall real GDP during that period.
Director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, highlighted on August 26 that Nigeria’s average GDP growth rate has been declining since 2014, reflecting a broader deterioration in the economic well-being of its citizens.
