IMF’s growth outlook for Nigeria up 3.2%

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its projection for Nigeria’s 2023 economic growth rate, now forecasting a growth of 3.2 percent. This marks an increase of 0.2 percentage points from its previous projection of 3.0 percent, outlined in October 2022’s World Economic Outlook.

According to the IMF’s January World Economic Outlook, this upgrade is due to the improvement of security measures in Nigeria’s oil sector. The growth rate is expected to slow down to 2.9 percent in 2024, however, the 2023 projection is still 0.3 percentage points higher than the World Bank’s projection and 0.1 percentage points higher than the African Development Bank’s projection for Nigeria.

Additionally, the IMF predicts that Nigeria’s improved growth in 2023 will contribute to a 4.1 percent growth rate for the sub-Saharan Africa region. The global economic contraction for 2023 has also been upgraded by the IMF, now projected at 3.4 percent, up from the 2.9 percent forecasted in October 2022.

According to the IMF, “Global growth is projected to fall from an estimated 3.4 percent in 2022 to 2.9 percent in 2023, then rise to 3.1 percent in 2024. The forecast for 2023 is 0.2 percentage point higher than predicted in the October 2022 World Economic Outlook, but below the historical average of 3.8 percent. In sub-Saharan Africa, growth is projected to remain moderate at 3.8 percent in 2023, before picking up to 4.1 percent in 2024.”