Nigeria’s economy recorded a 3.98 per cent growth in the third quarter of 2025, a modest expansion that has intensified calls for decisive reforms to unlock faster, broader-based, and more sustainable economic growth.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said the gross domestic product (GDP) grew in real terms year on year, reflecting increased output of goods and services across key sectors.
The performance, however, remains below the federal government’s 4.6 per cent growth target for 2025 and its long-term ambition of achieving about seven per cent annual growth to drive sustainable development.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had projected a 4.1 per cent growth rate for 2025, premised on easing inflation and sustained improvement in foreign exchange inflows, while the International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently revised Nigeria’s growth forecast upward to 3.9 per cent.
Against this backdrop, some economists, in an interview on Friday in Lagos, said targeted interventions could help bridge the gap between projections and actual performance.
Sherifdeen Tella of the Department of Economics, Babcock University, Ogun State, urged the government to prioritise investment in the industrial sector to stimulate domestic production.
“The government should empower domestic production firms in critical areas with funds that can be repaid in the future,” Mr Tella said.
“This support can be likened to the U.S. bailout for industrial firms during the global meltdown in 2008,” he added.
Mr Tella stressed that subsidising energy, particularly electricity and petroleum products, would stimulate growth in productive sectors of the economy.
He also called for innovative strategies to sustain peace in the Niger Delta, noting that improved stability would boost oil production and export earnings.
“This will encourage new players to venture into the sectors and increase exports into the global market, thereby earning more revenue for the government,” Mr Tella said.
Similarly, Ndubisi Nwokoma of the Department of Economics at Caleb University said improving the business environment was critical to accelerating economic growth.
“The government should do more regarding the macroeconomic stability to expedite economic growth,” he said.
Mr Nwokoma added that insecurity must be addressed to restore investor confidence.
“The insecurity challenges needed to be reduced so as to engender investment confidence in the general economy,” he said.
Mr Nwokoma also emphasised the need to prioritise the development of Nigeria’s rare earth minerals.
The government should partner with private companies with expertise in mining minerals and refining them to meet global standards, which will now make the government export more, earn extra funds, and enhance the sector’s contribution to the economy,” Mr Nwokoma added.
Also speaking, Okechukwu Unegbu, former president of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), said increased investment in modern agriculture would help accelerate economic growth.
“The government should adhere to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), which suggests that about 10 per cent of the year’s budget should be earmarked for the agricultural sector.
“This will mechanise the sector and its entire value chain and ensure the sector contributes adequately to the economy,” he added.
Mr Unegbu further urged the government to incentivise firms involved in agricultural value addition.
“This will enable private firms to do more regarding processing and packaging of various farm produce,” Mr Unegbu said.
(NAN)