Economic reforms described the collection of
policies to re-orientate economic activities in an attempt to re-direct the
desired course of evolution of an economy. They were therefore aimed at
altering the structure of an economic system for sustainable growth. Economic
reforms in Nigeria had their genesis in the structural adjustment program
instituted in 1986 to stem the tide of dwindling economic fortunes consequent
upon the glut in the market for the country’s main export resource as well as
the management oversight of the oil-boom era. Economic regulation had been the
general management philosophy in the period before and during the oil boom of
the 1970s. Several other reform programs had succeeded the 1986 initiatives.
Mostly, the reforms were directed at eliminating distortions in the various
markets and relying on market forces for resource allocation and general
macroeconomic decisions. Based on a descriptive analytical method, this study
showed that the expectations of a smaller government size and a larger private
sector were realized. Also, the remarkable expansion in the telecommunications
and the education sectors were gains. A combination of low technical changes
and little innovations appeared to explain the dwindling contributions of other
activity sectors and the general inert economy.
ECOWAS (1990) Structural Adjustment in West Africa: Achievements, Problems and Prospective. Memorandum to the Joint Meeting of ECOWAS Officials of Planning and Finance, Abuja.
Tarp, F. (1993) Stabilization and Structural Adjustment: Macroeconomic Framework for Analyzing the Crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa. Routledge, US & Canada. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203309285
Barnett, S. and Ossowski, R. (2002) Operational Aspects of Fiscal Policy in Oil-Producing Countries. Working Paper No. WP/02/177, International Monetary Fund, Washington DC.
Adam Smith International (2006) Analyzing Financial Flows between FGN and Public Enterprises. Economic Policy Position Paper No. 4, Published as Part of the Support to the Bureau of Public Enterprises.
Kaufmann, D. and Colleagues (2005) Nigeria in Numbers—The Governance Dimension: A Preliminary and Brief Review of Recent Trends on Governance and Corruption. Presentation for the President of Nigeria and His Economic Management Team, Mimeo.
International Monetary Fund (2003) Nigeria; Staff Report for the 2002 Article IV Consultation. IMF Country Report No. 03/3, International Monetary Fund, Washington DC.