Presently, Nigeria ranks as the third-largest economy in Africa by nominal GDP, which stands at USD 377 billion, after South Africa (USD 480 billion) and Egypt (USD 430 billion), while Algeria ranks fourth at USD 317 billion.
The oil and gas sector dominates Nigeria’s exports and accounts for 90 percent of export revenue and represents 14 percent of GDP. The other drivers of the economy are financial services, telecommunications, agriculture, manufacturing and entertainment.
Nigeria is a mixed economy and a lower middle-income country with a GDP per capita of USD1,556 compared with South Africa’s USD16,000, and the reason for the disparity is Nigeria’s larger population.
South Africa’s population is estimated at 65.4 million people in 2026, while Nigeria’s population in 2026 is projected at 242 million people and to reach 400 million in 2050 at a growth rate of between 2.1 percent and 2.4 percent per annum.
The growing population
This post was originally published on this site.
