The World Bank forecasts that economic growth in Nigeria would edge up to at least 2.5 per cent in 2018.
This is contained in World Bank’s January 2018 Global Economic Prospect report launched on Tuesday in Washington DC, United States.
Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is expected to grow by 2.8 per cent in 2019 and 2020, while the forecast shows that global economic growth will go up to 3.1 per cent in the year 2018.
According to the bank, growth in Sub-Saharan Africa is projected to continue to rise to 3.2 per cent in 2018 and to 3.5 per cent in 2019, on the back of firming commodity prices and gradually strengthening domestic demand.
However, the report showed that growth would remain below pre-crisis averages, partly reflecting a struggle in larger economies to boost private investment.
“South Africa is forecast to tick up to 1.1 per cent growth in 2018 from 0.8 per cent in 2017.
“The recovery is expected to solidify, as improving business sentiment supports a modest rise in investment.
“However, policy uncertainty was likely to remain and could slow needed structural reforms.
“Nigeria is anticipated to accelerate to a 2.5 per cent rate this year from one per cent growth in the year just ended.
“An upward revision to Nigeria’s forecast is based on expectation that oil production will continue to recover and that reforms will lift non-oil sector growth.
“Growth in Angola is expected to increase to 1.6 per cent in 2018, as a successful political transition improves the possibility of reforms that ameliorate the business environment,” it stated.
Côte d’Ivoire is forecast to expand by 7.2 per cent in 2018, Senegal by 6.9 per cent; Ethiopia by 8.2 per cent, Tanzania by 6.8 per cent, and Kenya by 5.5 per cent as inflation eases.
The World Bank said that the regional outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa was subject to external and domestic risks, adding that any unexpected activity in the US and Euro Zone could have a negative impact on the region.
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