Nigeria’s minister of finance , Zainab Ahmed, says the coronavirus pandemic and falling oil prices will impact negatively on the nation’s revenues and foreign exchange earnings.
Ms. Ahmed made the comments after the National Economic Summit meeting in Abuja on Thursday.
“On the economy, COVID-19 has resulted in the collapse in oil prices,” she said. “This will impact negatively, and the impact has already started showing on the federation’s revenues and on the foreign exchange earnings.
“Net oil and gas revenue and influx to the federation account in the first quarter of 2020 amounted to N940.91billion. This represented a shortfall of N125. 52billion or 31% of the prorated amount that is supposed to have been realized by the end of that first quarter.”
She added that the economic contraction will multiply the misery of the poor.
Analysing the nation’s economic growth further, the minister said the nation’s GDP, could in the worst case scenario, contract by as much as –8.94% in 2020.
But with the fiscal stimulus plan that the government is working on, the contraction can be mitigated and might end up in a negative –0.59%.”
