Determinants of Government Expenditure in Nigeria : An ARDL Approach

The study analytically examines the determinants of government expenditure in Nigeria using a sample from (1986-2021); the data was secondary in nature. Source from world development indicators and Central Bank of Nigeria. The method of analysis used are; descriptive and inferential statistics was employed; measure of location and measure dispersion was examined, the result shows that the data for analysis was stationary. While on the other hand inferential statistics; ARDL model, Cointegration was carried out. The result of ARDL showed that inflation and population have a long-run relationship with total government expenditure in Nigeria. The findings also, revealed that national income and trade openness are statistically insignificant in influencing the total government expenditure in Nigeria. Post estimation test showed that the model has no evidence of serial correlation, heteroscedasticity and non-normality of residuals. The study further suggest that inflation should be control all time to avoid incurring unwanted expenditure. Secondly, government should have the knowledge and needs of its population; through inclusive policies that will address both economic and social problems of its peoples