Business
‘Nigeria’s GDP Growth Rate Not Good Enough’
Some financial experts
have said that the high Gross Domestic Product rate being recorded by
Nigeria had not impacted positively on the living conditions of Nigerians.
The experts told our correspondent in Lagos that the
statistics only reflected productivity, but not real development.
According to them, the economy is growing in terms
of production of goods and services, but not in terms of good roads,
quality education and affordable health care system.
The Tide last wednesday recalled that Nigeria Bureau of
Statistics had reported that Nigeria’s GDP growth rate in the second quarter of
the year was 6.28 per cent.
A former Director at the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Titus
Okunrounmu, said that development in the oil sector was mainly instrumental to
the growth of the GDP.
Okunronmu said that other sectors were not contributing much
to the growth of the GDP.
“The ratio is not sufficient enough for meaningful
development in the country.
“It must be stressed that we require attaining a seven per
cent GDP growth rate to achieve significant development,” he said.
He said that tackling corruption in the public places was
fundamental to improving the living standard of the people.
A senior lecturer in the Department of Economics, Moshood
Abiola University, former University of Lagos, Dr.Tunde Adeoye, said that it
was possible for an economy to be growing without developing.
He said that development in infrastructure and institutional
capabilities were absent in the country.
“There is wide gap between growth and development, and until
our government bridges that gap, we will continue to experience growth without
development,” he said.
Another lecturer in same university, Dr. Ajide Bello, said
that absence of adequate infrastructure was affecting Nigeria’s economic growth
potentials.