Nigeria’s GDP Grows by 3.46% in Q3 2024 – NBS
By Patience Ikpeme
Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 3.46% year-on-year in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024, an improvement from the 2.54% growth recorded in the same period of 2023. This performance, detailed in the latest GDP report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Monday, reflects the resilience of key sectors in driving the nation’s economic growth.
Economic activities in real terms amounted to N20.1 trillion in Q3 2024, surpassing the N18.2 trillion recorded in Q2 2024 and the N19.44 trillion recorded in Q3 2023. The 3.46% growth rate represents a 0.92 percentage point increase compared to the same quarter last year.
The Services sector emerged as the leading contributor to GDP growth, expanding by 5.19% and accounting for 53.58% of the total GDP in Q3 2024. Agriculture grew modestly by 1.14%, slightly lower than the 1.30% growth recorded in Q3 2023. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the sector experienced significant growth of 57.53%, contributing 25.01% to nominal GDP, higher than Q2 2024’s 18.54% but lower than Q3 2023’s 26.36%.
The Industry sector grew by 2.18%, marking a notable improvement from the 0.46% recorded in Q3 2023. The oil sector rebounded with a real growth rate of 5.17% year-on-year, a significant increase of 6.02 percentage points from Q3 2023’s contraction of -0.85%. However, this marked a decline from the 10.15% growth recorded in Q2 2024. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the sector grew by 7.39%, contributing 5.57% to the total real GDP in Q3 2024.
The non-oil sector expanded by 3.37% in real terms, outperforming Q3 2023’s growth rate of 2.75% and Q2 2024’s 2.80%. Key drivers included Financial and Insurance Services, Telecommunications, Crop Production, Road Transport, Trade, and Construction. This sector contributed 94.43% to the GDP in Q3 2024, slightly lower than Q3 2023’s 94.52% but higher than Q2 2024’s 94.30%.
The manufacturing sector recorded a year-on-year growth rate of 0.92% in Q3 2024, improving from the same quarter in 2023 but lower than Q2 2024 by 0.35 percentage points. Its quarter-on-quarter growth was 6.74%, with a real contribution to GDP of 8.21%, lower than the 8.42% recorded in Q3 2023 and the 8.46% recorded in Q2 2024.
The latest GDP figures underscore the continued recovery and diversification of Nigeria’s economy. The growth was primarily driven by the robust performance of the Services and non-oil sectors, with improvements in agriculture and industry signaling a broad-based recovery. However, challenges remain in sustaining growth momentum across critical sectors such as manufacturing and oil.
