IMF says Nigeria’s economy will grow by 2.7% in 2022

The International Monetary Fund, IMF, has projected a 2.7 per economic growth for Nigeria in 2022 and 2.6 per cent growth for this year citing a recovery in non-oil sectors and the rising price of crude oil.

The IMF also projected that the Sub-Saharan economy will grow by 3.8 per in 2022 and by 3.7 per cent this year.

The IMF made these projections today in its latest Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan African Economy released at the sidelines of the ongoing Annual Meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington.

The IMF said: “Nigeria’s economy will grow by 2.6 per cent in 2021, driven by a recovery in non-oil sectors and higher oil prices, even though oil production is expected to remain below pre-COVID-19 levels.

“Growth will inch up slightly to 2.7 per cent in 2022 and remain at this level over the medium term, allowing GDP per capita to stabilise at current levels, notwithstanding long-standing structural problems and elevated uncertainties.”

In its+ projection for Sub-Saharan African, the IMF said: “Sub-Saharan Africa is set to grow by 3.7 percent in 2021 and 3.8 percent in 2022. This rebound is most welcome and largely results from a sharp improvement in global trade and commodity prices. Favourable harvests have also helped lift agricultural production.

“But the recovery is expected to be slower than in advanced economies, leading to a widening rift in incomes. This divergence is expected to persist through the medium term—partly reflecting different access to vaccines, but also stark differences in the availability of policy support.

“The outlook remains extremely uncertain, and risks are tilted to the downside. In particular, the recovery depends on the path of the global pandemic and the regional vaccination effort, and is also vulnerable to disruptions in global activity and financial markets.”