There was so much uncertainty about the unending pandemic and whether the fragile global recovery would be sustained.

On the domestic scene, Nigeria was neck-deep in one of its worst recessions in decades. The economy in 2020 had contracted by -6.1 per cent in the second quarter (Q2) and -3.62 the following third (Q3). With dipping revenues, the government could not do much to inspire confidence in an economy that was losing more jobs than it was creating.
Indeed, there was a consensus that the recession would be short-lived but sharp disagreement on the speed of recovery – a convoluted U- or V-shape recovery? There was fear that a prolonged shock could trigger a deeper slump or depression. But fortunately as predicted by some experts, the economy had exited recession earlier than expected. This was confirmed by quarter four (Q4) 2020 gross domestic product (GDP) data.
Amid concern about rising fiscal risks, the country’s output, in Q2, broke a six-year record, jumping by 5.01 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to consolidate the fragile growth that started in Q4 2020. The growth was roughly twice as high as any other previous quarterly performance in the life of the current administration.
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