Mr Ona Ohimor, an economic analyst, has said that any positive projection of Nigeria’s economy in 2017 is a welcome development.
He said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja while reacting to the latest World Economic Outlook of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
According to the report, Nigeria will recover from economic recession this year, projecting 0.8 per cent growth in the economy.
It said that Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would grow by 0.8 per cent this year and 2.3 per cent in 2018.
The IMF’s projection was based on prospects that there would be increased crude oil production due to security improvement in Nigeria.
Ohimor said that considering the negative projections of the nation’s GDP in the last three quarters, the projection should be considered as good.
The three successive quarters were negative in the GDP so anything positive is a welcome development.
He said that the Federal Government’s consideration of reconciliatory approach to end militancy in the oil producing Niger-Delta region was a step in the right direction.
“That is the way to go, we believe in the likelihood that there will be increase in crude oil production and obviously prices are rising already.
“What will be fundamental is for the government to be able to manage these positives so as to translate them to an inclusive growth.
“We could have increase in production of crude oil and increase in prices but for them to translate into something meaningful for the common man becomes the challenge.’’
NAN reports that the IMF, had in October 2016, predicted that Nigeria’s economy would grow at only 0.2 per cent in 2018.
The present report, however, reviewed it upwards.
The report stated that after the lackluster out turn in 2016, economic activity was expected to pick up pace in 2017 and 2018 in emerging markets and developing economies, which Nigeria belonged.
“However, there is a wide dispersion of possible outcomes around the projections, given uncertainty surrounding the policy stance of the incoming U.S administration and its global ramifications.’’
It, however, said that the assumptions underpinning the forecast should be more specific by the time of the April 2017 World Economic Outlook.
This is because there would be more clarity on U.S. policies and their implications for the global economy.
Source: NAN
