Natural Resource Abundance and Economic Growth in Nigeria(1980-2015) (Published)
The paper examined the impact of natural resource abundance on economic growth in Nigeria. The objectives of the study were to examine the impact of petroleum production on Nigerian economy, the impact of natural gas on the Nigerian economy, the impact of coal on Nigerian economy and the impact of limestone extraction on Nigerian economy. The Secondary data on GDP, Petroleum Production, Natural gas, coal and limestone (Dependent and Independent variables) are obtained from the CBN statistical bulletin and National Bureau of Statistics. The econometrics method of OLS, co-integration and Error Correction Mechanism were used for the analysis. The result of the unit root test showed that all the variables (GDP, Petroleum production, Natural gas, coal and Limestone) were stationary. The parsimonious error correction model indicated that R2 is 52%, meaning that the dynamic model is a good fit. The Durbin Watson value of approximately 2.0, suggests a lesser level of autocorrelation. Furthermore, the coefficient of petroleum (PR) is positively signed but statistically not significant at 55 level with GDP. The coefficient of Natural Gas (NG) is positively signed but statistically not significant at 5% level with GDP. The coefficient of coal (CL) is positively signed and statistically significant at 5% level with GDP. The coefficient of limestone (LS) is positively signed but statistically not significant at 5% level with GDP. Based on this results, this paper we recommends that Nigerian government must as a matter of urgency, look beyond crude oil and natural gas but look inward in harnessing the huge natural resources in the country to engender growth and development of the economy. Also, there should be a stabilization in spending of natural resource proceed to ensure stable and moderate economic growth.
Keywords: Natural Resource, Natural Resource Abundance, economic growth