By Seun Ibiyemi
Nigeria’s economy recorded a growth rate of 3.89 per cent in real terms in the first quarter of 2026, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The figure represents a year-on-year improvement over the 3.13 per cent recorded in the corresponding period of 2025, although it is lower than the 4.07 per cent growth posted in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The NBS disclosed this in its Nigerian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Report for Q1 2026, released on Monday in Abuja.
The report showed that the agriculture sector grew by 3.15 per cent in Q1 2026, a sharp increase compared to the 0.07 per cent recorded in Q1 2025. The industrial sector also expanded by 3.50 per cent, slightly higher than the 3.42 per cent recorded a year earlier.
However, the services sector recorded a marginal decline, growing by 4.31 per cent compared to 4.33 per cent in Q1 2025, though it remained the dominant driver of economic activity.
In terms of contribution to GDP, the services sector accounted for 57.73 per cent of total output, up from 57.50 per cent in the same period of 2025.
The report also revealed that aggregate GDP at basic prices stood at N110.79 trillion in nominal terms, representing a 17.79 per cent increase compared to N94.051 trillion recorded in Q1 2025.
In the oil sector, growth stood at 2.57 per cent year-on-year, an improvement from 1.87 per cent recorded in Q1 2025, but lower than the 6.79 per cent growth seen in Q4 2025. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the oil sector grew by 9.31 per cent.
Oil production averaged 1.55 million barrels per day (mbpd) in Q1 2026, slightly below the 1.62 mbpd recorded in Q1 2025 and 1.58 mbpd in Q4 2025.
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The oil sector contributed 3.92 per cent to total real GDP, down from 3.97 per cent in Q1 2025 but higher than 2.87 per cent in Q4 2025.
The non-oil sector remained the backbone of the economy, accounting for 96.08 per cent of total GDP in real terms. Key growth drivers included information and communication (telecommunications), agriculture (crop production), trade, manufacturing (cement), finance and insurance, real estate, construction, and transportation and storage.
National Bureau of Statistics attributed the performance to sustained growth across major non-oil sectors despite fluctuations in oil output.
