NIGERIA is on course to become one of the world's top 10 economies by the year 2050 overtaking countries like the UK and France according to the latest economic forecast published by international accountants PwC.
According to the forecast, Nigeria, Indonesia and Mexico could push the UK and France out of the top 10 economies of the world by 2050 provided they are able to build their institutions to global standards, diversify their economies and sustain growth-friendly policies. Titled The World in 2050: Will the shift in global economic power continue?, the report by highly respected PwC economists indicates that the future belongs to emerging economies.
Andrew Nevin, PwC Nigeria’s chief economist and co-author of the report, said: "Over the past decade, Nigeria has boasted superior economic growth and with the right reforms and investments, Nigeria could become one of the world’s leading economies by 2030, with further progress by 2050."
PwC's report looked at long-term projections of potential gross domestic product (GDP) growth up to 2050 for 32 of the largest economies in the world, covering 84% of total global GDP. According to the report, the current global economic power shift away from the established advanced economies in North America, Western Europe and Japan will continue over the next 35 years, despite a projected slowdown in Chinese growth after around 2020.
Furthermore, the report added that the world economy is projected to grow at an average of just over 3% per annum between 2014 and 2050, doubling in size by 2037 and nearly tripling by 2050. However, according to PwC, there is likely to be a slowdown in global growth after 2020, as the rate of expansion in China and some other major emerging economies moderates to a more sustainable long-term rate and as the working age population growth slows in many large economies.
Nigeria, Vietnam and the Philippines are notable risers in the global GDP rankings in the long term, reflecting relatively high projected average growth rates of around 4.5% to 5.5% per annum over the period to 2050. This report is in line with what most other economists have forecast, indicating that the future belongs to large developing economies with huge populations.
Countries like Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa who make up the Brics and Mexico, Indonesia, Turkey and Nigeria, who make up the Mint grouping, are seen as the economies of the future. Along with other developing economies like Vietnam, Indonesia and The Philippines, they are expected to take advantage of their young populations and untapped potential.
