Nigeria enters recession again!

This is the second time it is happening since 2016 and in the following days and week, it will send analysts into a frenzy and the citizens, great apprehension. That is, the Nigeria’s economy has entered into another recession, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Recession, according to economists, means a period of temporary economic decline during which trade and industrial activity are reduced, generally identified by a fall in Gross Domestic Product, (GDP) in two successive quarters. And GDP is the final value of the goods and services produced within the geographic boundaries of a country during a specified period of time. That is why GDP growth rate “is an important indicator of the economic performance of a country.”

NBS wrote: “Nigeria’s gross domestic product (GDP) recorded a growth rate of –3.62% (year-on-year) in real terms in the third quarter of 2020.

“Cumulatively, the economy has contracted by -2.48%. While this represents an improvement of 2.48% points over the –6.10% growth rate recorded in the preceding quarter (Q2 2020), it also indicates that two consecutive quarters of negative growth have been recorded in 2020.

“Furthermore, growth in Q3 2020 was slower by 5.90% points when compared to the third quarter of 2019 which recorded a real growth rate of 2.28% year on year.”

“COVID-19 has resulted in the collapse in oil prices,” she said.

“This will impact negatively, and the impact has already started showing on the federation’s revenues and on the foreign exchange earnings.

“Net oil and gas revenue and influx to the federation account in the first quarter of 2020 amounted to N940.91billion. This represented a shortfall of N125. 52billion or 31% of the pro-rated amount that is supposed to have been realized by the end of that first quarter.”