Massive capital investment boosts Nigeria's economy: accountant general

The on-going massive capital investment by the Nigerian government is helping the country to get out of a recession gradually, a top official said Friday.

Speaking at a forum in Abuja, the nation's capital city, Idris Ahmed, Accountant-General of the Federation of Nigeria, said the recent announcement by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that Nigeria has the largest economy in Africa demonstrates the resilience of the economy.

"The IMF rating confirms the resilience of our economy and the resilience of Nigerians in terms of coming out of this recession," he added.

"It also goes to confirm the massive capital investments that are being made by this government and it is not just by the Federal Government but by the state governments as well," the official said.

"So, we will come out of this recession. It is just a matter of time," Ahmed said.

The IMF, in its Economic Outlook Report for October, projected Nigeria as the biggest economy in Africa ahead of South Africa and Egypt despite the worst economic recession Nigeria faced in 29 years.

Nigeria entered a recession on Aug. 31, when figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed the second quarter Gross Domestic Product fell 2.06 percent year on year, after slipping 0.4 percent in Q1.

Financial experts have called the the West African country's economic situation "the worst possible time ever," with many predicting that it may take up to three years before the country can come out of the recession. Endit