The impressive contribution of the information and communications technology (ICT) industry to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the second quarter of 2022 has excited the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Pantami. The “Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product Report” for Q2 2022, published on August 26th, 2022, by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), made this claim.
According to a press release on Saturday, 27th August 2022signed by the Technical Assistant (Research and Development) to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Dr. Femi Adeluyi, he said that the Digital Economy sector under Professor Pantami has continued its trend of playing a key part in the growth on Nigeria’s economy. The Report by the NBS indicated that the ICT sector contributed 18.44% to the total real GDP in Q2 2022. This is the highest contribution of ICT to the GDP and is truly unprecedented and marks the third time that the sector has achieved an unprecedented contribution to Nigeria’s GDP during the tenure of the Minister- in Q1 2020, Q2 2021, and now Q2 2022.
The oil sector contributed 6.33% to the total real GDP in Q2 2022, which was lower that the contribution in Q2 ‘2021 and Q1 ‘2022, where it contributed 7.42% and 6.63% respectively. The non-oil sector’s contribution grew by 4.77% in real terms, resulting in a 93.67% contribution to the nation’s GDP in the Q2 ‘2022, higher than Q2 ‘2021 and Q2 ‘2022, where it contributed 92.58% and 93.37% respectively.
The Minister notes that the growing contribution of the ICT sector to the GDP is a result of the commitment of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR to the development of the digital economy. The diligent implementation of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) for a Digital Nigeria, stakeholder engagement, and the creation of an enabling environment have all played an important role in this achievement.
The support of President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, has contributed immensely to the impressive developments in the sector. The unprecedented contribution of ICT to Nigeria’s GDP can also be attributed to the dynamic and results-oriented leadership of the sector. The GDP Report has shown how critical the ICT sector is to the growth of our country’s digital economy and, by extension, the general economy.
The Minister congratulates all stakeholders in the digital economy ecosystem for this cheering news. He also renews his call to all sectors to take advantage of the Federal Government’s new focus on the digital economy to enable and improve their processes through the use of it. This would enhance the output of all the sectors of the economy and boost Nigeria’s GDP.
