Nigeria’s GDP Grew By 3.98% In 2021 Q4 As Electricity Outages, Fuel Scarcity continue

Nigeria’s Inflation Rate Drops To 24.48 per cent In January After Rebasing

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The National Bureau of Statistics says Nigeria’s GDP grew by 3.98% in Q4 2021, sustaining a positive trajectory.
But the general consensus by most Nigerians is that GDP growth and even drop in inflation have not left Nigerians better off, but that living condition continue to deteriorate.

They further argue that Central Bank of Nigeria, (CBN) that is supposed to be focused on its core responsibility of price, system and exchange rate stability, among others, is enmeshed in direct intervention through its officials visiting and supervising farmers on their farms and trying to please the powers that be and as well as actively involved in media show of ‘rice pyramids’ whose positive impact are yet to be felt by Nigerians.

In fact rising prices of food stuff and other essential commodities as well as dwindling fortunes of the naira have continued to make Nigerians live below poverty level

But the NBS said on Thursday that,
“Nigeria Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 3.98%(year-on-year) in real terms in the fourth quarter of 2021, showing a sustained positive growth for the fifth quarter since the recession witnessed in 2020 when output contracted by -6.10% and -3.62% in Q2 and Q3 of 2020 under the COVID pandemic.

However, Nigerians in several cities including Abuja and Lagos have continue to live by a “double-whammy” of fuel scarcity and electricity outage, leaving millions struggling to keep up with their daily activities and businesses.

For weeks, the country has faced fuel shortage caused by the importation of low standard petrol into the country.

Many fuel stations have run out of fuel as the government tries to retrieve the dirty fuel and distribute cleaner volumes.

In Abuja, black market petrol sold as high as N700 a litre on Wednesday as motorists spent hours at fuel stations trying to buy the product for their cars and generators.
Similarly, in Lagos motorists continue to spend hours at filling stations and paying their way through for the elusive Petroleum product.
With Nigeria’s perpetually poor electricity supply, millions of residents rely on generators for power.

Hence, the prolonged fuel shortage means people are not only unable to power their cars but also their generators.

Amidst the continuing scarcity, several residents districts in Abuja and Lagos reported electricity outages.

The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) said in a message to customers on Wednesday: “Dear Customer, please note that the interruptions of electricity supply you are currently experiencing is due to the instability of supply from the National Grid due to low Generation.”

“We appeal to you to be patient as all stakeholders are working hard to restore system stability. For enquiries, call 08039070070,” the message read.

In a similar statement to customers, the Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), which is responsible for parts of Lagos, said on its official twitter handle, ” Dear customer, the present outage on Agbara 33KV Feeder is due to an accident along Badagry Express Road damaging 19 of our poles.”

Similarly, Ikeja electricity distribution company informed their customers last week Thursday:
Dear Customer, Kindly be informed that there would be an interruption in Power Supply AKUTE 33KV FEEDER Date: Thursday, February 10th,2022. Time: 11:00 -15:00.Duration:4:00 hours to enable our Engineers carry out line tracing. Supply would be restored as soon as the maintenance is completed. Thank you for allowing us to serve you.

But the nation’s Statistics Bureau insists that the fourth-quarter growth indicates a steady economic recovery accounting for an annual growth of 3.40% in 2021,” a report by the NBS disclosed on Thursday.

It further stated that the Q4 2021 growth rate was higher than the 0.11% growth rate recorded in Q4 2020 by 3.87% points and lower than 4.03% recorded in Q3 2021 by 0.05% points.
Nevertheless, the report noted that quarter on quarter, real GDP grew at 9.63% in Q4 2021 compared to Q3 2021, reflecting a higher economic activity than the preceding quarter. In the quarter under review, aggregate GDP stood at N49,276,018.23 million in nominal terms.

This performance is higher when compared to the fourth quarter of 2020 which recorded aggregate GDP of N43,564,006.29 million, indicating a year-on-year nominal growth rate of 13.11%.

The nominal GDP growth rate in Q4 2021 was higher relative to 10.07% growth recorded in the fourth quarter of 2020 but lower compared to 15.41% growth recorded in the preceding quarter. 2021 annual nominal growth stood at 13.92%.

A further breakdown of the report showed that in the fourth quarter of 2021, Nigeria recorded an average daily oil production of 1.50 million barrels per day (mbpd), lower than the daily average production of 1.56 mbpd recorded in the same quarter of 2020 by 0.06mbpd and lower than the third quarter 2021 production volume of 1.57mbpd by 0.07mbpd.

The non-oil sector grew by 4.73% in real terms during the reference quarter (Q4 2021).

This rate was higher by 3.05% point compared to the rate recorded same quarter of 2020 and 0.71% point lower than the third quarter of 2021.

This sector was driven in fourth quarter 2021 mainly by Agriculture (crop production); trade; Information and Communication (Telecommunication); and Financial and Insurance (Financial Institutions), accounting for positive GDP growth. In real terms, the Non-Oil sector contributed 94.81% to the nation’s GDP in fourth quarter 2021, higher from share recorded in the fourth quarter of 2020 which was 94.13% and higher than the third quarter of 2021 recorded as 92.51%.

The annual contribution in 2021 was 92.76%.