The Nexus between Real Export Growth and Economic Growth in Nigeria

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VI, Issue IV, April 2019 | ISSN 2321–2705

The Nexus between Real Export Growth and Economic Growth in Nigeria

Mayor, A.¹ and Mayuku, J. G.²

¹Department of Statistics, Delta State Polytechnic, Otefe-Oghara, Delta State, Nigeria
²Department of Social Science, Delta State Polytechnic, Otefe-Oghara, Delta State, Nigeria

Abstract:- This study examined the relationship between real export growth and economic growth in Nigeria. The source of data used in this study was secondary data obtained from African Development Bank Group. The Mann-Whitney U test and the Spearman’s Correlation Analysis were the statistical tools used in this study. The findings of the study showed that the mean rank of real GDP growth is higher than the real export growth. Findings showed that real export growth does not impact on real economic growth in Nigeria. Also, it was found that a positive weak linear relationship exists between real economic growth and real export growth in Nigeria.

Keywords: Export Growth, GDP Growth, economic growth, Mann-Whitney U test

I. INTRODUCTION

Since the start of the new millennium and most especially with the recent economic crunch experienced by most countries of the world especially the affected developing economies like Nigeria. Researchers and economists have often call for the need for countries in the world to diversify their economy thereby expand their source of foreign earning. Developing countries such as Nigeria have over the years been exporting mostly primary goods as one of the few avenues to sustain and contribute to the Country’s per capital growth rate.
The Nigerian export is disaggregated in two the oil and non oil export and these are the major sources of Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings (Mustapha 2010). The over dependency of the Nigerian economy on oil export has classified it as a mono-product economy. The Oil sector has been found to account for more than 90% of total export in Nigeria, whereas the non-oil sector accounts for less than 10% of the total export.
Economic scholars have often investigated the relationship between exports and economic growth. This is because there are different ways through which export diversification can generally contribute to increased economic growth. Export growth often lead to increased scope of economies of scale (Abdulai and Jaquet, 2002). Economies of scale is a product of enlargement of market size due to efficient allocation of resources and competitiveness of exporting firms. Increased export also positively impact on aggregate output by relaxing foreign exchange constraint. Hence, the need for the present study to examine the relationship between real export growth and economic growth in Nigeria.

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