“Nigeria’s Economy to Rank Top 10 in 2050” – PwC

PricewaterhouseCoopers, PwC, on Thursday, March 18, projected that the Nigerian economy could leap through the world rankings to top 10 in 2050 with projected Gross Domestic Product, GDP, of $$6.4 trillion, surpassing Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Saudi Arabia.

Partner and Chief Economist, PwC Nigeria, Andrew Nevin, who disclosed Disclosing this at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, LCCI-PwC organized stakeholders forum on the state of the economy, tagged “Nigeria: Looking beyond oil,”  said Nigeria was the largest economy in Africa and 22nd globally.

He said to achieve this ranking, however, diversification from the economic over dependence on crude oil was required.

“Nigeria’s intrinsic potentialities lie beyond oil; harnessing these potentialities has become an imperative, given the expectations of lower for longer oil prices. Based on recent trends, our report reviews the impact of low oil prices on key economic indicators and the real sector through an industry survey,” he said.

However, he said the transition to a non-oil economy would not be an easy task. He said based on a 2016 PwC interview of foreign companies across Nigeria, four concerns stood out as challenges with the business environment: corruption, inadequate infrastructure, low skill levels, and macroeconomic uncertainty.

“Our survey highlights the exchange rate as one of the top challenges facing industries in recent times. Capital controls, FX rationing, and restrictions on the importation of certain items are measures the CBN has implemented to preserve the foreign reserves and maintain currency stability,” he stated.

He noted that Nigeria needed to ensure sustainable fiscal management that was resilient to global oil price cycles.