Nigeria is once again entering recession for the second time in four years. The continent's largest economic power is entering recession, after a contraction in its GDP (Gross Domestic Product) for the second consecutive quarter. This was announced by the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics. The GDP of Nigeria, an oil-producing country, contracted by 3.62% in the third quarter of 2020, after having already fallen by 6% in the previous quarter, the same source said.

The Bureau of Statistics explains this sharp drop in Nigeria's GDP — whose cumulative fall over the first nine months was 2.48%” — by the significant impact of the coronavirus epidemic on the global economy, and in particular the fall in oil prices.

“Over the first nine months of 2020, cumulative GDP is therefore down by 2.48%,” the Bureau of Statistics said. The contribution of oil to Nigerian GDP contracted in the third quarter by 13.89% compared to a decrease of 6.63% in the second quarter of 2020. At the same time, non-oil economic activities declined by 2.51%. The decrease was 6.05% in the second quarter of 2020.

Nigeria's economy was already declared in recession in 2016, for the first time in two decades. It had recovered in 2017 but had been slowing down since then. According to the IMF, the country's real economy is likely to be strongly impacted by this new situation. The Fund thus forecasts a fall in Nigeria's GDP of 5.4% for 2020, while the government is forecasting a contraction of 8.9%.

Moreover, the largest economic power on the African continent remains its largest oil producer, with around two million barrels produced per day. Even though the Covid-19 epidemic and the fall in fuel prices have reduced production to around 1.4 million barrels.