Nigeria which is seemingly reliant on its oil exports has in the past few years begun growing in other sectors. The development being perpetrated in these other sectors has been largely responsible for the growth of Africa’s largest economy as a whole, in recent years.
Unfortunately, these sectors growth did not reflect in the country’s GDP growth rate as the country experienced a decline in its 2022 nominal GDP.
The decline could be attributed to factors such as inflation, oil vandalism, security problems, and the lingering effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. According to Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria’s GDP growth rate for 2022, stood at 3.1% compared to the 3.4% GDP growth rate experienced in 2021. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected Nigeria's economic growth to be 3.2% in 2023.
This low projection is due to the effects of external factors such as lower oil production in line with an agreement through OPEC+ (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, including Russia and other non-OPEC oil exporters), while non-oil growth is expected to remain robust.
Regardless, other sectors are stepping up, while Nigeria’s oil sector is currently experiencing some shortcomings. According to a report by Nairametrics, which was derived from Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data, here are the 10 sectors in the country that grew by the most figures in 2022.
| Rank | Sector | Growth Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Quarrying and Other Minerals | 27.52% |
| 2. | Air Transport | 26.23% |
| 3. | Financial Institutions | 17.24% |
| 4. | Metal Ores | 15.98% |
| 5. | Road Transport | 15.14% |
| 6. | Water Transport | 14.11% |
| 7. | Water Supply, Sewage, Waste Management, and Remediation | 13.62% |
| 8. | Telecommunications | 10.72% |
| 9. | Chemical and Pharmaceutical products | 9.44% |
| 10. | Insurance | 8.68% |