The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Financial Derivatives Company Ltd, Bismarck Rewane said Ghana is now richer than Nigeria.
Rewane, who disclosed this in an interview on a television programme yesterday, said Nigeria has fallen from the 32nd largest economy in the world to 42nd.
The renowned economist added that in Africa, the nation has also descended from its 1st ranking to 4th in terms of wealth management and accumulation.
Rewane, who noted that Ghana has also overtaken Nigeria, said, “In the past, we were always richer than Ghana, now we are here. External reserves and GDP figures speak for themselves.”
In March this year, Rewane, the CEO of FDC, was among the appointed members of President Bola Tinubu’s Economic Management Team Emergency Taskforce (EET) with a mandate to formulate and implement a consolidated emergency economic plan.
Speaking on the first anniversary of Tinubu’s term in office, Rewane categorised Nigeria’s economic performance into the ‘good, bad, and ugly’, based on his available metrics.
He added that the economic metrics and rankings look tough, but that there is room for improvement in the Nigerian economy.
He said, “Our ranking among African countries has declined. Last year, our GDP growth was 2.98 percent; South Africa was 1.93 percent, Kenya four percent, and Ghana 3.8 percent. Inflation was 33% for us, 5% for South Africa, 5% for Kenya and 25% for Ghana.
“Our GDP per capita is $1,111, while South Africa’s is $6,700; Kenya’s is $2,000, and Ghana’s is $2,200. External reserves as a percentage of GDP illustrate a tough picture. According to him, “In the past, we were always richer than Ghana; but now, we are here. External reserves and GDP figures speak for themselves”.
He added that major policy changes were announced in 2023, including the $1 trillion GDP goal, saying the time lag between policy announcements and their effects was a drag on outcomes, and unintended consequences led to social unrest.
“Nigerians and Nigeria need new borrowing to refinance existing obligations, and policy changes, institutional reforms, and new borrowings are expected to lead to positive and faster growth from 2025 to 2026.
“The economic weakness is partly structural and mostly exogenous. Exogenous means from outside, while structural means fundamental. The structural challenges include rent-seeking, market structure issues, energy crunch (4,000 MWs), regulatory bottlenecks, declining labour productivity, and demographic pressures including urbanization.
“Exogenous shocks include Covid-19 disruptions, post-Covid global supply chain disruptions, political tensions, high global interest rates, transit developments, the cost of living crisis, wage agitation, and social unrest”, Rewane stated.
The economist also reviewed President Bola Tinubu’s promises, policies, and announcements a year after his assumption in office.
The Presidential Economic Coordination Council (PECC) comprises distinguished leaders and key government officials, with President Tinubu serving as Chairman of the PECC.
