Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 3.40 per cent in 2021, the highest since 2014, when the economy grew by 6.22 per cent, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) disclosed yesterday.

According to the National GDP Q4 report released by the NBS, the expansion in economic activities was majorly driven by the non-oil sector.
The report also revealed that the country’s GDP grew by 3.98 per cent (year-on-year) in real terms in the fourth quarter of last year (Q4 2021), lower than the 4.03 per cent recorded in the preceding quarter.

The performance indicated a sustained positive growth for five consecutive quarters since the recession witnessed in 2020, when output contracted by 6.10 per cent and 3.62 per cent respectively in the Q2 and Q3 of 2020 under the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to report by the statistical agency, the economy was largely driven by the non-oil sector, which accounted for 94.81 per cent of GDP while the oil sector contributed 5.19 per cent to growth.

The Q4 growth indicated a steady economic recovery, accounting for an annual growth of 3.40 per cent in 2021. It noted that growth rate under the review period was higher than the 0.11 per cent recorded in Q4 2020 by 3.87 percentage points and lower than 4.03 per cent recorded in Q3 by 0.05 percentage points.
The NBS, nevertheless, stated that quarter-on-quarter, real GDP grew at 9.63 per cent in Q4, reflecting a higher economic activity than the preceding quarter.

The average daily oil production stood at 1.50 million barrels per day (mbpd), lower than the 1.57mbpd in Q3 and 1.56 mbpd in Q4 2020.
Oil growth rate stood at -8.06 per cent in real terms in Q4 and annual growth rate of -8.30 per cent in 2021. On an annual basis, oil contributed 7.24 per cent compared to 8.16 per cent in 2020.

The non-oil sector, which excluded crude petroleum and natural gas activities, recorded a growth of 4.73 per cent in real terms, an improvement from the 1.69 per cent reported in Q4 2020.

The sector recorded an annual growth of 4.44 per cent compared to -1.25 per cent in 2020.
However, annual contribution of the non-oil sector increased to 92.76 per cent from 91.84 per cent in 2020.
The services sector contributed 55.11 per cent to the total growth while agriculture contributed 26.84 per cent to overall GDP in real terms in Q4, lower than 29.94 per cent in the preceding quarter and 26.95 per cent in Q4 2020.
The manufacturing sector contributed 8.46 per cent, lower than the 8.60 per cent lower than 8.96 per cent in Q3 and 8.98 per cent in Q4 2020.

In nominal terms, aggregate GDP stood at N49.28 trillion in Q4, higher than the N43.56 trillion in Q4 2020, and indicating a year-on-year nominal growth rate of 13.11 per cent.
Nominal GDP in the preceding quarter of Q3 2021 stood at N45.11 trillion, while annual nominal value in 2021 was N173.53 trillion as compared to N152.32 trillion in 2020, indicating a growth rate of 13.92 per cent.

In terms of real GDP which shows the volume of economic activities, the sum of N20.33 trillion was recorded in Q4, higher than N18.54 trillion in the preceding quarter and also by N778.91 billion compared to N19.55 trillion recorded in Q4 2020.
The nominal GDP growth rate in Q4 was higher relative to 10.07 per cent growth recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2020 but lower compared to 15.41 per cent growth recorded in the preceding quarter.

However, in 2021 annual nominal growth stood at 13.92 per cent.
According to the NBS, “The improvement being seen in the output growth in the last five quarters depicts a steady progress made in stemming the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated negative impact on livelihood, well-being, and the economy.
“Globally, many countries have witnessed an improvement in economic performances compared to 2020 when COVID-19 was endemic. Thus, economic recovery is a gradual process that requires consistent collective efforts to improve economic activities across the institutional sectors.
“However, in Nigeria, the prospects of consolidating the recovery are glaring considering the improved economic performance over these periods of time.”