GDP - NEWS AGENCY OF NIGERIA

Tosin Kolade
Mar, Mon, 2025

Foreign

China inaugurates 2025 economic roadmap, targets 5% GDP growth

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By Fortune Abang

The Government of China has inaugurated its 2025 economic Roadmap centred on bolstering five per cent GDP growth, innovation and investment.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the roadmap is centred on boosting consumption, innovation and technology, fiscal and monetary policy implementation, as well as market reform.

China’s Premier Li Qiang disclosed this during the virtual presentation of the Chinese government work report against the backdrop of the third session of the 14th National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing, China.

He stated that the focus of the roadmap was fiscal expansion, technological innovation, and foreign investment, outlining a comprehensive approach aimed at sustaining the country’s economic growth amid global uncertainties.

Li said, “A key feature of China’s 2025 economic strategy is an expanded fiscal policy with the deficit-to-GDP ratio set at four per cent, marking a notable increase from the previous year.

“To support economic stimulus, Chinese government plans to issue 1.3 trillion yuan in ultra-long special treasury bonds, up by 300 billion yuan from last year, along with 4.4 trillion yuan in local government special-purpose bonds.

“Such represents a 500 billion yuan increase over 2024 levels; this fiscal expansion is designed to boost domestic consumption.

“Of the ultra-long special treasury bonds, 300 billion yuan will be allocated to consumer goods trade-in programmes.”

Tian Xuan, Deputy to the 14th NPC and Associate Dean at PBC School of Finance, Tsinghua University, explained the significance of the initiative, saying expanding domestic demand is a priority among ten key tasks outlined in the report.

According to Tian, the dedicated 300 billion yuan for trade-in programmes will stimulate consumption, drive transformation and upgrade consumption patterns.

Chan Chun-ying, Hong Kong’s Deputy to the NPC and Advisor at Bank of China Hong Kong Ltd, expressed confidence in the economic target.

He added that China had consistently sustained medium-to-high-speed economic growth.

He restated that such is notable in China’s ability to maintain a five per cent growth rate and demonstrated confidence, which in turn boosted confidence.

“China is prioritising technological advancements in biomanufacturing, quantum-computing, embodied AI and 6G.

“The AI Plus initiative aims to integrate digital technologies with manufacturing strengths, supporting extensive application of large-scale AI models, development of next-generation intelligent terminals and smart manufacturing equipment.

“The emergence of deep-seek has demonstrated that we can achieve global AI capabilities, using cost-effective chips and faster processing speeds,” Chan said.

Erik Solheim, former UN Under-Secretary-General and former Executive-Director of the UN Environment Programme, described the roadmap as China’s commitment to stabilising foreign trade and advancing Belt and Road cooperation.

“China remains a significant force in the world economy with an expected economic growth of five per cent for 2025, China will continue to be the biggest source of global economic growth.

“Stability and innovation are key themes of this year’s two sessions; China is at the forefront of innovation, particularly in the two most important sectors, such as economy and environment,” Solheim said.

High points of the event were remarks by Patrick Nijs, co-founder of the EU-China Joint Innovation Centre and Bernardo Mendia, Board Advisor at the EU Young Entrepreneurs Association. (NAN) (nannews.com.ng)

Edited by Gregg Mmaduakolam/Oluwafunke Ishola

Philip Daniel Yatai
Dec, Wed, 2024

Foreign

ASRIC chair urges members to commit 1% GDP to research, dev’t

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Tolu Aiyegbusi

The Chairman of African Scientific Research and Innovation Council (ASRIC), Prof. Sammy Chumbow, has called on governments of African member states to commit 1 per cent of their nations’ GDP to fund research and development.

Chumbow, the President of Cameroon Academy of Sciences, made the call on Wednesday in Zanzibar, Tanzania, in an acceptance speech after emerging as the chairman of ASRIC, making him the third elected chairman of the council.

The newly elected ASRIC chair stated that African leaders ought to devote more resources and funds to the development of Science, Technology and Innovation in their countries.

NAN reports that Chumbow, a national of Cameroun, contested with representatives from Senegal and Zimbabwe and he emerged as chairman of ASRIC with 15 votes from 22 voting member countries.

He said that science and technology policies, which would improve research and innovation across the continent, called for cooperation among scientists in the continent.

Chumbow promised to work with the team of ASRIC Assistant Chairs to ensure African countries invest in capacity building.

He called for improvements in the area of innovation policy development and promotion of regional innovation policy.

Chumbow also pledged to use his office to follow through with implementing the policy document of STISA-2024 and address the aspirations identified under the Agenda 2063.

Emphasising the need for increased funding for Research and Development (R&D), he added that funding for R&D was geared towards long-term success in any economy.

“The reality of insufficient funding has never been more apparent than during the recent Coronavirus Pandemic.

“African countries must increase their spending on STI to at least 1% of their national budgets to achieve success that can place Africa on the global map,’’ the chairman said.

Chumbow also stressed the need for capacity building for researchers and potential innovators in the continent.

According to him, increased investment in Science, Engineering and Entrepreneurship skills training would improve R&D outputs.

He said, “Capacity building would address low science infrastructure in African countries and ensure progress in the area of STI in Africa.”

Prof. Ekanem Braide, the outgoing President of the Nigerian Academy of Sciences (NAS) also recommended approaching NGO’s, funding agencies dedicated to funding both public and private R&D to improve ASRIC’s activities.

She stated that funding played a key role in the implementation of ASRIC innovative activities.

“At the regional level, we need to approach and dialogue with African regional bodies, NGO’s, INGO’s to also invest in developing regional innovation strategies.

“This is so ASRIC can pursue and achieve its mandates and implement its flagship projects such as the impactful hepatitis project and other projects,” she said.

NAN reports that the winners of the first, second, third and fourth Vice Chairs of ASRIC were: Prof. Vasey Mwaja, Prof. Francis Agyeni, Dr Thabile Ndolovu and Prof. Khaled Ghedira, respectively. (NAN)

Edited by Bashir Rabe Mani

Tosin Kolade
Dec, Mon, 2024

Economy/Business

GDP: Nigeria’s economy making some progress- Don

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By Okeoghene Akubuike

An Analyst, Prof. Abiodun Adeniyi has stated that Nigeria’s economy is showing progress, although not yet reflected in the living standards of the population.

Adeniyi, who is the Dean of the School of Postgraduate Studies at Baze University Abuja, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday.

He was responding to the release of the Q3 2024 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which revealed a 3.46 per cent growth in Nigeria’s GDP in real terms.

According to the report, this growth rate surpassed the 2.54 per cent recorded in Q3 2023 and the 3.19 per cent achieved in Q2 2024.

The report shows that GDP performance in Q3 2024 was driven by contributions from both the oil and non-oil sectors, with the service sector leading the way, growing by 5.19 per cent and contributing 53.58 per cent to the total GDP.

The service sector includes banking and finance, trade, tourism, real estate, telecommunications, information and communication technology, arts, entertainment, recreation, and education.

Adeniyi explained that the growth is a monetary policy indicator, which may not be reflecting fiscal policy measures.

He noted that since the manufacturing and production sectors are declining, the service sector is the primary contributor to Nigeria’s GDP growth, as shown in the report.

“Yes, we need to acknowledge that there is growth, even though it is still marginal and not yet significant enough to impact people’s lives or living standards.

“However, this does not change the fact that there is growth in our GDP.

“There is growth, but what we need to do is ensure alignment between fiscal and monetary policies, and between the macroeconomic variant of GDP and macroeconomic indices.

“Once this alignment occurs, we can expect the improvements to be reflected in people’s standards of living”.

Adeniyi also stated that the cost of living crisis could begin to ease once the economy shows recovery in both statistical and practical terms.

He emphasised that Nigeria is on the right track in spite the marginal growth.

“Although the changes we want to see are not yet evident, we must recognise the progress being made, no matter how small,” he said.

He urged the government to maintain consistency in its policies to achieve economic stability and sustainability.

“We need policy consistency, not just in words but in actions, transparency, accountability, and conduct. Once these elements are visible, we can be confident that we are on the right track,” he added.

(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Vivian Ihechu

Rabi'u Sani Ali
Nov, Fri, 2024

General News

Closing gender gaps can add N15trn to Nigeria’s GDP annually – Minister

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By Justina Auta

Hajiya Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, Minister of Women Affairs, says closing gender gaps will add N15 trillion to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annually by 2025.

Sulaiman-Ibrahim stated this on Thursday in Abuja at the joint UN Accountability Forum and Orange/Lighting ceremony, themed: ”Towards Beijing +30: Unite to End Violence Against Women and Girls.”

She said studies had shown that countries with higher levels of gender equality experience faster economic growth, improved governance, and more stable societies.

She said: “For Nigeria, closing gender gaps has the potential to add N15 trillion to our GDP annually by 2025.
“Women constitute 49 per cent of our population and account for 41 per cent of small and medium-scale enterprise (SME) owners.

“Yet their representation in senior leadership is just 22 per cent, with only 3.6 per cent holding seats in parliament.
“These disparities represent untapped potentials that if harnessed, could drive our nation’s development forward.”

Sulaiman-Ibrahim said the event was an opportunity to reflect on shared commitment towards advancing gender equality and ending violence against women and children.

“It is an opportunity to evaluate our progress, reassess our strategies, and reaffirm our commitment to achieving the bold vision outlined in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, now approaching its 30th anniversary,“ she said.

Dr Felicia Onibon, Nigeria Report Consultant, said the over 100 paged “Nigeria Beijing Report” contains all the activities done around SDGs and also the Beijing platform for action in the past five years.

Onibon said, “to resolve some of the issues and gaps that we have in the report, we would still continue to ask that our partners within the United Nations and development agencies come up with strategic plans to support the Nigerian government.”

Nesreen Elmolla, UN Women Deputy Representative, while speaking on the Nigeria Beijing Report, noted the huge milestone recorded in Nigeria.

“Nigeria has been an inspiring country on many fronts, but on Violence Against Women, Nigeria has actually been leading on operationalising and domesticating the violence against persons, Prohibition Act.

“This is now enacted in 35 states. This is a huge milestone for Nigeria that we are proud to be celebrating.”

According to her, the orange and lighting ceremony symbolises hope, unity and a collective vision for a world and a Nigeria free of violence.

“Let us reaffirm our commitment to a Nigeria where women’s rights, girls rights, men’s rights, human beings rights underpin justice, solidarity and prosperity for all,” she said.

Abdourahamane Diablo, Head of Office and Country Representative of UNESCO to Nigeria, reiterated their commitment to ending GBV, girl-child education and advancing gender equality.

“UNESCO aligns strongly with the goals of the Beijing Platform for Action, particularly in advancing gender equality through education and eradicating gender-based violence,” he said.

Francis Koessan, Deputy Representative, UNFPA, called for more synergy between stakeholders, engagement with men and boys and advocacy for policies implementation to end GBV and investments in preventive measures.
that will ensure safety of women and girls.

Cheikh Toure, UNODC Representative in Nigeria said that, “we can transform commitment into tangible outcomes, fostering a society where women and girls can live free from violence, fear and inequality.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that highlight of the event include unveiling of the Nigeria Beijing Report, Orange and Lighting ceremony, and signing of commitment bond by stakeholders. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng.com)

Edited by Maureen Atuonwu