The International Monetary Fund has downgraded Nigeria’s economic growth projections for 2024 to 3.0 per cent from the 3.1 per cent it forecasted in October.
It disclosed this in its ‘World Economic Outlook Update, January 2024,’ released on Tuesday. In a table, the IMF estimated that Nigeria’s economy grew by 2.8 per cent, a slight decline from the 2.9 per cent it forecasted in October.
The international lender expects Nigeria’s economy to grow by a percentage point to 3.1 per cent in 2025. Its 2024 projection is a lot less than the 3.76 per cent the country’s government expects in 2024.
In its October update, the IMF said that Nigeria’s slow growth will be because of weaker oil and gas production.
At the time, it said, “Growth in Nigeria is projected to decline from 3.3 per cent in 2022 to 2.9 per cent in 2023 and 3.1 per cent in 2024, with negative effects of high inflation on consumption taking hold.
“The forecast for 2023 is revised downward by 0.3 percentage point, reflecting weaker oil and gas production than expected, partially as a result of maintenance work.”
In the third quarter of 2023, Nigeria’s GDP grew by 2.54 per cent year-on-year in real terms according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Commenting on economic growth recently, the Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Olayemi Cardoso, said, “The projections for the nation’s economy paint an optimistic trajectory as the Federal Government of Nigeria anticipates real GDP growth of 3.76 per cent in 2024, slightly surpassing the estimated 3.75 per cent for 2023.”
In its 2024 prediction for sub-Saharan Africa, the IMF expects the region’s economy to grow by 3.8 per cent.
