THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has downgraded its forecast for Nigeria’s economic growth in 2024 to 3.1 per cent.
The global lending body cited weaker growth recorded in the first quarter of the year, (Q1) 2024.
The new forecast was contained in the July 2024 World Economic Outlook of the IMF released Tuesday, July 16.
The downgrade represents 0.2 percentage points below the earlier forecast of 3.3 percent.
Also, it followed weaker-than-expected gross domestic product-(GDP) growth recorded by the country in the first- quarter of 2023.
Nigeria has been experiencing weak growth with the latest inflation figure of 33.95 released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), revealing no end in sight.
To worsen the concerns, macroeconomic indicators like the high cost of transportation, insecurity in Nigeria’s food belt, and high energy costs have continued to slow down growth.
Data from the NBS showed that Nigeria’s GDP growth dropped quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) to 2.98 percent in Q1’24 from 3.46 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2023, (Q3’23)
The IMF, however, retained its 3.0 percent forecast for Nigeria’s economic growth in 2025.
As a result of the lower forecast for Nigeria’s economic growth, the IMF also downgraded its forecast for Sub-Saharan economic growth in 2024 to 3.7 percent from the April WEO forecast of 3.8 percent.
Nevertheless, it raised the economic growth forecast for the region in 2025 to 4.1 percent from 4.0.
“The forecast for growth in sub-Saharan Africa is revised downward, mainly as a result of a 0.2 percentage point downward revision to the growth outlook in Nigeria amid weaker than expected activity in the first quarter of this year,” the IMF said.
The ICIR reported that IMF has upgraded Nigeria’s economic growth to 3.3 per cent in 2024 from 3.0 per cent.
The Bretton Wood Financial Institution earlier gave the upward review in its latest forecast released on July16.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.