Agric, fiscal policy led us out of recession – Finance minister

The Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Hajiya Zainab Ahmed, has said a positive growth of over three per cent and fiscal policies of the current administration were largely responsible for quick exit of Nigeria out of recession.

She said the nation’s exit from recession was a key indicator that the country was positioned for stable and consistent growth.

The minister gave the explanation Wednesday while briefing State House reporters after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Nigeria’s economy unexpectedly came out of a recession in the fourth quarter as growth in agriculture and telecommunications offset a sharp drop in oil production.

Gross domestic product grew 0.11 per cent in the three months through December from a year earlier, compared with a decline of 3.6 per cent in the third quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics said.

The minister said, “This is one of the shortest lived recessions we have witnessed in the country, despite the impact of the COVID-19, but I must say that the result of this exit is as a result of the fiscal policies, the monetary policies and the Economic Sustainability Plan that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari has been implementing.”

She also said from the 46 sectors of the economy, 17 recorded positive growth and this is higher than the number of sectors that had recorded positive growth in the third quarter.

She also said the agricultural sector posted a strong growth of 3.42 per cent during the last quarter and when you compare to the previous quarter, it’s a much better performance.

“Overall, the non-oil sector grew by 1.69 per cent. This is an indication that the diversification efforts that the economy has been pushing is actually also posting results; while the oil sector is declining, the non-oil sector is growing,” she stated.