Real estate displaces crude oil as third largest subsector in GDP rebasing

• The real estate subsector has displaced crude oil as the third-largest subsector in Nigeria
• This follows a Gross Domestic Product rebasing exercise of the National Bureau of Statistics
• The rebasing exercise shows the diversified and changing dynamics of the Nigerian economy

 Nigeria’s real estate sector has now been listed as the third largest subsector in Nigeria, displacing crude petroleum and natural gas.

This is according to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rebasing exercise of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The real estate sector moved from a previous fifth position to third, having contributed 5.20 per cent to the GDP in the first quarter (Q1) of 2024.

With the rebasing exercise, the order of Nigeria’s leading industries has been rearranged. Grain crop production and trade sectors remain the top and second-largest industries, while real estate has displaced crude petroleum and Natural gas to claim third place.

Telecommunications remains in the fourth position, while crude petroleum and natural gas took the fifth spot previously occupied by real estate. The construction sector is at the sixth spot, and food, beverages, and tobacco is seventh on the list.

Rebasing exercise shows diversified and dynamic economy

The GDP rebasing exercise brings a new twist to the economic structure of Nigeria, which suggests a diversified and dynamic economic landscape.

The exercise shows recognition of the growing importance of infrastructure, urbanisation, and property development.

It also reveals the reduced dependence of the Nigerian economy on crude petroleum and natural gas, as was previously the case, and the recognition of the increasing contribution of non-oil sectors to the economy.

The exercise includes data from new and previously underreported economic activities.

Some of the areas included in the new ranking are digital economic activities, modular refineries, pension funds administrators, domestic households as employers of labour, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), quarrying and other mining activities, Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), and illegal and hidden activities.

NBS chose 2019 as the new base year

It will be recalled that the NBS, in October 2024, announced plans to rebase the GDP data and the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to ensure the economy is streamlined according to changing economic realities and make for structural changes.

The bureau selected 2019 as the new base year because of the year’s status as a period of “relative economic stability” compared to other recent years, which witnessed significant economic headwinds.

It said, “Some major surveys that served as inputs into the rebasing covered this period. 2020, 2021, and 2022 were avoided as base years due to economic instabilities – this follows IMF guidelines.”

NBS further stated that 2019 was chosen because “other sector-specific administrative data for this period were collected.”

The agency will unveil the newly rebased GDP figures by the end of January 2025.

75% of Nigeria’s 42 million housing units are substandard – Minister

Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Musa Dangiwa, said over 75 per cent of Nigeria’s current 42 million housing units are substandard.

Dangiwa noted that Nigeria faces a housing crisis as nearly half of Nigeria’s population resides in informal settlements.