The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has predicted that the economy of Nigeria and other Sub-Sahara African nations will grow by 3.8 per cent in 2022.

Making this disclosure in a statement after a hybrid meeting with African ministers of Finance, Kristalina Georgieva, the Managing Director of IMF, echoed the projection of her organisation’s Global Economic Outlook released in October.

“The global economy is rebounding, with our October World Economic Outlook projecting 5.9 per cent growth this year and 4.9 per cent in 2022. However, we project sub-Saharan Africa to grow by 3.7 per cent this year and 3.8 per cent next year,” she said.

Ms Georgieva highlighted that the growth projection was in the wake of rising uncertainty around new COVID-19 variants and financial conditions.

She warned that the new COVID variant requires continued vigilance and a renewed global push to increase vaccine equity.

She also advised Sub–Saharan nations to continue to prioritise critical measures to overcome the ongoing health crisis and social assistance programs for vulnerable groups.

The hybrid meeting also emphasised the need to renew efforts towards deepening international cooperation, mobilise financing from the international community, and address challenges associated with fragility, insecurity, and persistent economic risks.

Peoples Gazette had in October reported that the IMF in its report released in October projected the region’s economy to grow by 3.7 per cent and 3.8 per cent for 2021 and 2022 respectively.

The outlook also predicted that the global economy will grow by 4.9 per cent in 2022.

Giving reason for the slow recovery, Abebe Aemro Selassie, director of the IMF’s African department, explained that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the region’s economy is making a swift recovery difficult.

He also blamed slow vaccine rollout and stark differences in policy space for the laggard recovery.

The projection implies that the region will suffer the slowest recovery in the world as advanced markets grow by more than five per cent, while other emerging markets and developing countries grow by more than six per cent.