For Today’s Numbers to Ponder, Nigeria witnesses 1.87% economic growth, amidst the global pandemic and crude oil price slash. In the same vein, the country’s export cashbook recorded N4.75tn as export revenue. Between 2015 and 2019, the Nigerian government budgeted N464m for eight human-related clinical trials of locally produced drugs. Moreso, it has also approved 10 billion naira worth of loans and grants to various groups to conduct for healthcare-related research.
1.87% Economic Growth
Amid global health and economic crises, Nigeria’s economy grew in the first quarter of 2020 by 1.87 per cent, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Monday. The rate of growth, however, was the slowest in more than a year, at a time of significant global disruption resulting from the COVID-19 public health crisis, a sharp fall in oil prices, and restricted international trade. The growth rate declined to –0.23 percent compared to the first quarter of 2019 and –0.68 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2019. “In the quarter under review, aggregate GDP stood at N35,647,406.08 million in nominal terms. This performance was higher when compared to the first quarter of 2019 which recorded N31,824,349.67 million, with a nominal growth rate of 12.01% year on year.
N4.75tn Export Revenue
Nigeria has realised N4.75 trillion from export revenue between 2016 and 2019 at the nation’s seaports. The revenue grew by 86.24 per cent in the last four years from non-oil exports. In 2016, the country realised N344 billion; 2017, N629 billion; 2018, N1.1 trillion and 2019, N2.5 trillion. Findings by New Telegraph revealed that between 2016 and 2017, the non-export revenue was raised by 45.32 per cent from N344 billion to N629 billion, while in 2018 and 2019, the revenue grew by 56 per cent from N1.1 trillion to N2.5 trillion. To further boost Federal Government’s revenue from non-oil exports, Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) said it had assisted exporters to facilitate the movement of 800 trucks of export cargoes that were stranded at Nigerian port terminals for several weeks since the outbreak of coronavirus in the country.
N464m Lab Trial
The Civic Media Lab (CML) found out that Nigerian government budgeted for a total of eight human-related clinical trials of locally produced drugs between 2015 and 2019 with no evidence of commercial output. These eight projects shared N464.24m within the years under view. Interestingly, CML findings show that seven of the provisions were two recurring line items. The description: “Clinical Trials Outgrowers of Plants for Sustainability,” first appeared in 2016. From 2017 to 2019, it was merged with: “Clinical Trials Outgrowers of Plants for Sustainability (Development and Production of Anti Sickling and Anti Epilepsy Drugs).” It received the approval of some N348m within the four budgeting cycles it appeared in.
N10bn Health Intervention Grant
Over N10 billion loans and grants have been approved for various groups and organisations for pharmaceutical and healthcare-related research, under the COVID-19 intervention scheme, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said. The spokesperson of the CBN, Isaac Okorafor, who confirmed this in Abuja on Sunday, said several other applications were also being processed, pending approval. Mr Okorafor said the applications covered the two broad categories under the COVID-19 intervention programmes in the healthcare sector. He identified the two categories as the loan programme and grants and/or loans for pharmaceutical and healthcare-related researches on COVID-19. The second category announced about two weeks ago by the CBN was aimed at helping the effort to find a local alternative cure to the dreaded coronavirus.
94% Rebound
The rebalancing in the oil market, which has resulted in a 94 per cent rebound in crude prices, added to enhanced institutional investors’ patronage in the Nigerian bourse buoyed equities transactions last week, as the All-Share Index (ASI), and market capitalisation soared massively by 5.59 per cent to close the week at 25,204.75 and N13.136trillion. Similarly, all other indices finished higher with the exception of NSE ASeM, which closed flat. Analysts argued that the bullish rally also followed investors positioning ahead of markdown dates of blue-chip stocks, with many companies yet to release their 2019 full year, and Q1 2020 financials expected to do so.