The contribution of Information and communications technology (ICT) to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) surpassed the contribution of the oil and gas sector of the Nigerian economy in the second quarter of the year 2019.
TheNewsGuru (TNG) reports the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released GDP’s figures for Q2 2019 recently, which showed that the contribution of the ICT sector to Nigeria’s GDP surpassed that of oil and gas.
According to the NBS figures, the country’s GDP grew by 1.94% (year-on-year) in real terms in the second quarter of 2019 compared to the second quarter of 2018, which recorded a growth of 1.50%.
Furthermore, the non-oil sector contributed 91.18% to the nation’s GDP in the second quarter of 2019 as opposed to the 8.82% contributed to total real GP by the oil sector.
Particularly, the ICT sector contributed 13.85% to total nominal GDP in the second quarter of 2019 which is much higher than the 11.22% contributed in the same period in 2018.
This development has excited the Minister of Communications, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, who has hailed the ICT’s contribution to the GDP of the nation in Q2 2019.
In a statement by Philomena O. Oshodin (Mrs), Deputy Director/Head of Information/Press & PR Unit in the Ministry, Pantami observed that the significant contribution of the ICT sector to the GDP is as a result of the concerted efforts of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.
He said the manner in which the implementation of the administration’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) is being pursued has resulted in positive returns for the country.
These efforts, he said, led to a sustained focus on growing the non-oil sector of the economy, especially ICT, and that the results witnessed are testimonies of impact of these efforts.
The Minister reiterated the Communications Ministry’s commitment to the economic diversification efforts of the present administration and called on all stakeholders to support Mr President’s laudable initiatives aimed at taking Nigeria to the next level.