Expert disagrees with World Bank on $400b valuation of Nigeria’s economy

The Chief Executive Officer of Chapel Hill Denham, Mr. Bolaji Balogun has disagreed with the conventional estimates which put the value of the Nigerian economy at over $400 billion.

Data from the World Bank in 2022 pegged Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at $477.39 billion or 0.21 percent of the world’s economy.

However, in his keynote address at the Annual Enterprise Table and the 5th-anniversary celebration of Deal HQ Partners, Balogun asserted that Nigeria’s economy should be worth between $600 billion and $650 billion today.

He said: “If you believe my thesis that population drives economic activity and economic growth, then you’ll also believe my thesis today that this is not a $400 billion economy.

“This is probably today already a $600 or $650 billion economy because quite a lot of what happens in the real economy, in the Instagram economy, in the illicit economy- and not everything illicit is drugs and weapons. All of that is not measured today when you measure Nigeria’s economic activities.”

READ ALSO: Nigeria ranks fourth on World Bank’s IDA borrowers’ list with $14.3bn debt

He also spoke about how Africa’s unique demography of young population would spur growth in the continent, especially Nigeria.

The financial expert listed agriculture, solid minerals, and creative industry as some of the sectors that would spur Nigeria’s economic growth in years to come.

He charged government at all levels to give priority attention to infrastructure.

Balogun added: “If you are going to deliver that potential, we are going to have to build the infrastructure to process, preserve, and be able to transport and deliver value out of our agriculture.

“We need power and transportation infrastructure to bring value out of our mineral resources.”

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now