Download What effects have you seen from the global economic crisis in Nigeria?

What effects have you seen from the global economic crisis in Nigeria?
Saweda Onipede Liverpool
Ph.D. Candidate, International and Policy Economics
Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Initially, numerous African news sources and leaders speculated that the limited participation of
our countries in the global financial system would minimize the negative effect of the global
crisis on our economies.
This speculation failed to account for the ripple effect of a shock in one sector on an entire
economy and of recession in one economy on the rest of the world, which one expects in the flat
world--aptly described by Thomas Friedman. It also failed to recognize that Nigeria in particular
is largely dependent on its revenue from exportation of crude oil, the price of which fell by more
than half .
Not discounting local factors, key to much of Nigeria’s current economic crisis, time has shown
that Nigeria, has significantly felt the impact of the global meltdown. The fall in crude oil prices
combined with lower foreign direct investments has seen Nigeria seeking official development
assistance. Also, remittances from Nigerians abroad have fallen, which increased the intensity of
domestic problems and the national manifestations of the global crisis.