The World Bank has projected that Nigeria’s economy will grow to 3.6 per cent between 2025 and 2026 following ongoing reforms by the Federal Government.
The global bank gave the projection in its report titled “Global Economic Prospects”, January 2025 published on Thursday.
This growth projection, according to the international lender is due to recent reforms by the Federal Government which has helped to boost business confidence.
The report reads, “In Nigeria, Gross Domestic Product, GDP, growth increased to an estimated 3.3 per cent in 2024, mainly driven by services sector activity, particularly in financial and telecommunication services.
“Macroeconomic and fiscal reforms helped improve business confidence. In response to rising inflation and a weak naira, the central bank tightened monetary policy.
“Meanwhile, the fiscal deficit narrowed due to a surge in revenues driven by the elimination of the implicit foreign exchange subsidy, following the unification of the exchange rate and improved revenue administration.
Continuing, the report noted, “Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, SSA is expected to firm to 4.1 per cent in 2025 and 4.3 per cent in 2026, as financial conditions ease alongside further declines in inflation. Following weaker-than-expected regional growth last year, growth projections for 2025 have been revised upward by 0.2 percentage points, and for 2026 by 0.3 percentage points, with improvements seen across various subgroups. At the country level, projected growth has been upgraded for nearly half of SSA economies in both 2025 and 2026” it noted.
The bank added that oil production is expected to increase over the forecast period but remain below the OPEC quota.
“In addition, the international lender noted that despite having the largest economy and population in SSA, Nigeria has a modest intraregional role as an export destination and does not yet have a substantial role as a source of FDI or remittances, although its banks have a regional presence” it noted.
By: Babajide Okeowo