The Effect of Agricultural Productivity on Economic Growth in Nigeria

Abstract

The crucial role agricultural productivity plays in the overall development of a nation cannot be overemphasized. It is not only seen as a key to poverty reduction and vehicle for promoting equity, fairness and social justice but also helps to supply the essential economic ingredients which are necessary condition for sustained economic growth. Thus, enhancing effective investment on the agricultural sector in order to boost its capacity has been a tenet of growth and development strategies of most developed countries. The basic objective of this work is to carry out an empirical investigation on the effect of agricultural productivity on economic growth in Nigeria, using annual time series data from 2000 to 2014. The paper employs the Ordinary Least Square (OLS) method. Empirical results indicate that there is, indeed a long-run relationship between agricultural productivity and economic growth. All the variables including, the GDP contribution of the agricultural sector, gross expenditure on agriculture and gross access to bank (agricultural) loans/credit had the expected positive signs in the Nigerian economy and were also tested in relation to economic growth by using the Pearson correlation co-efficient. The findings have a strong implication on agricultural policy in Nigeria. The study suggest that a concerted effort should be made by policy makers to concentrate on the productivity of the agricultural sector in order to boost its production capacity, which would enhance productivity of output and in turn stimulates economic growth.