'Seun Ibukun-Oni, Abuja
DAILY COURIER — President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has expressed satisfaction with the latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which indicates a continued positive trajectory in Nigeria’s economic performance. According to the report, the nation's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 3.2% year-on-year in the second quarter (Q2) of 2024, a significant improvement over the 2.51% recorded in the same period last year.
According to a release today by the senior special adviser to the president on media, Bayo Onanuga, the President welcomed the NBS findings as a further affirmation that the economy is on a recovery path, following the recent report of declining food and headline inflation. In his August 4, 2024, national broadcast, President Tinubu had assured Nigerians that the country’s economy was beginning to show signs of recovery, and he reiterated this optimism in response to the new data.
"Our economy is recovering, and sooner than later, Nigerians will begin to feel, see, and enjoy the impact of our administration's economic re-engineering efforts," President Tinubu stated. He emphasized the government's commitment to working tirelessly to restore hope and confidence among Nigerians, urging them to remain steadfast in their faith in the government's reform agenda. He also cautioned against being swayed by naysayers aiming to derail the nation's progress for their own selfish interests.
The NBS report highlighted that the Q2 2024 growth rate not only surpassed the 2.51% recorded in Q2 2023 but also exceeded the 2.98% growth registered in Q1 2024. The service sector emerged as a key driver of this growth, posting a 3.79% increase and contributing 58.76% to the overall GDP output. Meanwhile, the agriculture sector experienced a modest growth of 1.41%, slightly below the 1.50% recorded in the same period last year. The industrial sector saw a significant rebound with a growth rate of 3.53%, a notable improvement from the -1.94% contraction in Q2 2023.
Another crucial aspect of the report was the increase in crude oil production, which rose to 1.41 million barrels per day, compared to 1.22 million barrels in the previous year. President Tinubu expressed confidence that with the policies his administration has implemented, production is expected to rise to about two million barrels per day in the near future.
In terms of sectoral contributions to the GDP, the industry and services sectors played a more significant role in the aggregate GDP during Q2 2024 compared to the corresponding quarter of 2023. The aggregate GDP at basic prices for the quarter under review stood at N60,930,000.58 million in nominal terms, marking a 16.94% year-on-year nominal growth from the N52,103,927.13 million recorded in Q2 2023.
The report from the National Bureau of Statistics has bolstered the government's confidence that the measures put in place are yielding positive results, and the President reassured Nigerians of a stronger economic performance in the months to come.
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