Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has recorded a growth of 0.51 per cent (year-on-year) in real terms in the first quarter of 2021.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) disclosed this in its latest Nigerian Gross Domestic Product Report. It noted that the new figure represented two consecutive quarters of growth following the negative growth rates recorded in the second and third quarters of 2020.
The rate of growth recorded in the first quarter of 2021 was slower than the 1.87 per cent rate recorded in the first quarter of 2020.
However, the figure was higher than the 0.11 per cent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2020, indicative of a slow but continuous recovery.
“Nevertheless, quarter on quarter, real GDP grew at -13.93% in Q1 2021 compared to Q4 2020, reflecting a generally slower pace of economic activities at the start of the year.
“In the quarter under review, aggregate GDP stood at N40,014,482.74 million in nominal terms. This performance is higher when compared to the first quarter of 2020 which recorded aggregate GDP of N35,647,406.08 million, indicating a year-on-year nominal growth rate of 12.25 per cent,” the report read.
It added: “The nominal GDP growth rate in Q1 2021 was higher relative to 12.01 per cent growth recorded in the first quarter of 2020, as well as the 10.07 per cent growth recorded in the preceding quarter.
“For better clarity, the Nigerian economy has been classified broadly into the oil and non-oil sectors.”
The GDP report revealed that the oil sector contracted by 2.21 per cent, compared to the -19.76 per cent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2020, while non-oil GDP grew 0.79 per cent, lower than the 1.69 per cent positive growth in the preceding quarter.
According to the NBS, the growth in the non-oil sector was driven mainly by the Information and Communication (Telecommunication) sector.
Other drivers included agriculture (crop production); manufacturing (food, beverage, and tobacco); real estate; construction, human health and social services.
“In real terms, the non-oil sector accounted for 90.75 per cent of aggregate GDP in the first quarter of 2021, higher than its share in the first quarter of 2020 which was 90.50 per cent but lower than 94.13 per cent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2020,” the report said.
The second consecutive real GDP growth showed that the economy was slowly recovering after slipping into a recession following the negative growth rates recorded in the second and third quarters of 2020.