a. Positive Contributions
i. Foreign Exchange Earnings: Since oil was discovered in commercial or economic quantity in Nigeria, it has remained the major source of foreign exchange earnings for the country.
ii. Major Source of Government Revenue: Over the years, the petroleum sector has generated a lot of revenue for the government.
iii. Employment Generation: The petroleum sector has played a very significant role in employment generation in the country.
iv. Contribution to GDP: This sector has made remarkable contributions to gross national product and gross domestic product.
v. Petroleum has contributed to the external sector of the economy
vi. Foreign policy: The sector has made it possible for Nigeria to conduct affairs on equal terms with other nations of the world.
b. Negative Contributions
i. Shift in attention: Since the discovery of oil in commercial quantity, every national attention has been focused on the sector to the detriment of it.
i. Neglect of the agriculture sector: This has resulted in a shortage of food and agricultural raw materials as well as rural-urban migration.
ii. Social problems such as corruption, robbery and bribery.
iii. Environmental hazards: Oil exploration over the years has had serious negative consequences on the fauna floral and aquatic life of the oil-producing area.
iv. Threat to the country’s corporate existence: The regional factional squabbles over oil have directly threatened the corporate existence of the country as many ethnic groups are calling for self-determination.
Responses