LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT REFUNDS 145 FORMER SUBSCRIBERS OF EGAN HOUSING ESTATE
admin The Lagos State Bureau of Statistics (LBS), in partnership with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), has urged stakeholders in the informal sector to provide factual data that would mirror the state’s true Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget Mrs. Olayinka Ojo made the appeal during a two-day Stakeholder’s Forum on performance of economic data in Lagos, organized by the LBS.
According to her, the informal sector has been identified as a key performer in the state’s economic development but not well represented in its GDP.
Mrs. Ojo noted that the informal sector has been playing an integral role in the economy by providing livelihoods for many, thereby adding to the GDP ‘but this has not been well captured in the computation’.
She said: “The informal sector plays a critical role in our economy, providing livelihoods for millions and contributing substantially to GDP. It is a sector marked by resilience, ingenuity, and adaptability, often thriving even under challenging circumstances.
“But despite its undeniable importance, the informal sector remains underrepresented in economic data and planning, limiting its potential for growth and integration into the broader economic framework.”
According to the Permanent Secretary, the capturing of accurate data on the informal sector has been a persistent challenge because of the diverse, decentralized, and often undocumented nature of the sector. “This forum therefore provides a unique opportunity to address the gap by engaging stakeholders from across the spectrum—government, academia, civil society, and the informal sector itself,” she added.
Manager of SMEDAN Dr. Olubunmi Kole-Dawodu, noted that many things happen in the informal sector that could enhance the state’s economic progression. He thus urged the government to harness the full opportunities in the sector.
He said: “We know that a lot of activities run within that sector, a lot of value including employment creation, revenue generation, income generation for their employees and all that. We want to harness all the blessings that come with that sector. This is a whole sector that the government has not been looking at completely.
“The number of informal businesses in Lagos alone is above N50 million which means that some people run two or three businesses informally. Some are not registered officially, some do not have tax identification number, and so whatever they do is just informal or semi-formal in some cases.
“We want to put a bit of structure to this and see how computation of the GDP can be accurate in Lagos.”
Kole-Dawodu added that the informal sector faces challenges like ‘lack of formal recognition and limited access to resources’ as a result of inaccurate data. “Therefore, the event provides an avenue to call on the government to cater for intervention for the sector,” he added.
Former Director in the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Chief Emeka Ofili, said: “The economy is made up of both the formal and informal sector. But the GDP that is being compiled is significantly from the formal sector while the informal sector, which contributes a substantial part of it, is not being covered.
“Lagos will show the correct size of its economy with this giant step to incorporate the informal sector data to the computation of the state’s GDP.”
