The Nigerian economy grew by five percent in the second quarter of 2021, making it the highest in the last six years, President Muhammadu Buhari has said.
He said the growth was a result of his administration’s focus on job creation, consistency in policy and innovation.
Buhari stated this at the inauguration of the Nigeria Jubilee Fellows Programme at the State House, Abuja, on Tuesday.
He said the Jubilee Fellows Programme would further consolidate on the success recorded.
The president listed some of the key drivers of economic growth and diversification in the second quarter to include telecommunications, transportation, electricity, agriculture and manufacturing.
“Tuesday, June 22, 2021, I set-up the National Poverty Reduction with Growth Strategy (NPRGS) steering committee to coordinate our work to fulfil my promise to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in ten years,” he said.
“This is building on the positive results from the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan and the targeted response to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic with the Economic Sustainability Plan.
“These efforts have yielded results with Nigeria recording its biggest economic growth in six years with a GDP growth of 5 per cent in the second quarter of 2021.
“The sectors that drove this growth are trade, telecommunications, transportation, electricity, agriculture and manufacturing.
“Each of these sectors showed significant improvement and thus created more jobs for our populace.
“An important part of our policies and strategies is the focus on employment and creating opportunities for our people,” he said.