The contributions made to Nigeria’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP), according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), soared by 10.52% year-on-year as it hits N7.28 trillion between January and September 2022.
In a report cited by BizWatch Nigeria, NBS disclosed that in the corresponding period of 2021, the telecommunication sector contributed N6.58 trillion to real GDP, stressing that it added N11.99 trillion to nominal GDP within the period under review, a 17.83% y-o-y increase from the N10.18 trillion it was in the corresponding period of last year.
The NBS explained the gross output of telecoms and information services as, “Revenue from telephone, telex, facsimile, telegraph, and other income from satellite and internet services.
“Intermediate consumption: Transit fees, operational expenditure, minor repairs and maintenance, and other expenses.”
The statistics body categorises telecoms under the information and communication sector which comprises of telecommunications and information services; publishing; motion picture, sound recording and music production; and broadcasting.
Describing the contribution of the ICT sector to GDP in the third quarter of 2022, the NBS said, “In nominal terms, in the third quarter of 2022 the sector growth was recorded at 20.32% (year-on-year), a 9.15% points increase from the rate of 11.17% recorded in the same quarter of 2021, and 6.20% points higher than the rate recorded in the preceding quarter.
“The quarter-on-quarter growth rate recorded in the third quarter of 2022 was -8.25%. The Information and Communications sector contributed 9.58%t to the total nominal GDP in the 2022 third quarter, higher than the rate of 9.22% recorded in the same quarter of 2021 and lower than the 12.12% it contributed in the preceding quarter.
“The sector in the third quarter of 2022 recorded a growth rate of 10.53% in real terms, year-on-year. From the rate recorded in the corresponding period of 2021, there was an increase of 0.87% points. On a quarter-on-quarter, the sector exhibited a growth of -8.70% in real terms.
“Of total real GDP, the sector contributed 15.35% in the 2022 third quarter, higher than in the same quarter of the previous year in which it represented 14.20% and lower than the preceding quarter in which it represented 18.44%.”
Nigeria’s GDP growth in Q3 2022
In what appeared to be the slowest since COVID-19 ravaged the global economy, Nigeria’s GDP only grew by 2.25% year-on-year in the third quarter of the year (2022).
This publication understands that the slow growth might not be unconnected to the base effects of the recession and the challenging economic conditions that have impeded productive activities.
