Export expansion, domestic investment, and economic growth in Nigeria

Abstract

This paper seeks to investigate the nexus between export expansion, investment and output growth in Nigeria. In doing this, annual time series data, covering the periods from 1981 to 2019 were analysed using the “Johansen co-integration test”, VECM, and the “Granger-Causality test”. The study revealed an insignificant relationship between domestic investment and export expansion. Based on the Granger-Causality test, the result shows a bi-directional relationship between domestic investment and economic growth. These findings give evidence that domestic investment and economic growth are not viewed as sources of export expansion in Nigeria during the period under review. Therefore, changes in policies and regulations to speed up the export expansion of Nigeria will ultimately yield positive results to achieve high rates of stable economic growth. Policymakers in Nigeria should search for the alternative catalyst to stimulate domestic investment and economic growth geared towards promoting long-term export expansion in Nigeria effectively.