An economist, Dr. Biodun Adedipe, has said if government sustains ongoing reforms in various sectors of the economy, the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would grow by 3.05 per cent in 2018.
Adedipe, who is the founder, B. Adedipe Associates Ltd. (management and financial consultants firm), while speaking on the nation’s economic outlook for 2018 at the Lagos Business School Alumni Association (LBSAA) 2017 Alumni Day in Lagos, at the weekend, projected that the nation’s exchange rate would be between N305 and N372 per dollar in 2018.
He also predicted that the nation’s external reserves would be sustained at $42billion with $56 per barrel of crude oil with sustained government policies.
According to him, the inflation rate and interest rate would remain at double digit at 13.45 per cent in line with present economic realities.
Furthermore, he expressed optimism that 2018 would witness more growth and development projects, when compared with what was obtained in the past three years, if government would identify growth opportunities and explore them.
He, therefore, urged government to ensure early passage and implementation of the 2018 budget to achieve the desired growth, adding that its implementation must be fast tracked to avoid a repetition of what happened in 2017.
He urged government to desist from naira devaluation to sustain growth and recovery in 2018, noting that currency devaluation would not help the nation’s economy due to fewer export items in the country.
The economist identified overdependence on imports, low national productivity, and monoculture economy as variables that triggered the nation’s economic recession, stating that government must accelerate non-oil revenue generation to stimulate the current fragile economy.
“Recovery is still fragile, and if we do not take it further, we will go into double-dip recession,” Adedipe said.
He further called for alignment of monetary, trade, fiscal policies, privatisation of selected public enterprise and assets, as well as cost cutting measures for economic growth.
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