Confronting Inter-Regional Disparities in Nigeria

Disparities in endowments of agricultural, mineral and commercial wealth across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones determine the rates at which the different regions can grow. Economic activities and growth are concentrated in four regions, while the remaining two regions are largely excluded from the growth processes. This calls for urgent efforts to make economic growth more inclusive. Investing in fast and efficient rail links between rich and poor regions is suggested as a win-win national re-distributive strategy that could bring resource-poor regions closer to needful inputs, ensure benefits of growth are more evenly distributed across regions without hurting any of the resource-rich regions, ultimately eliminate inter-regional growth disparities, and ensure the peaceful coexistence that is required to sustain growth. Nigeria needs a strong national economic intelligence apparatus like the defunct National Economic Intelligence Committee (NEIC) to, among other things, provide the foresight required henceforth to ensure that regional growth divergence is prevented rather than cured