The Impact of the Quality of Transport Infrastructure on the Nigerian Economy

Abstract

This study investigates the effect of the quality of transport infrastructure on the Nigerian economy. The Budgetary Allocation to Transport and the Contribution of the Transport sector to the gross domestic product (GDP) were used for the computation of estimates. First, it was hypothesized that the contribution of the transport sector to the economy does not increase with investment in transport infrastructure. Pearson Correlation Coefficient r was used in testing this hypothesis and the result showed a positive r value of 0.63 which was statistically significant. Hence, the alternative hypothesis which states that the transport sector’s contribution to the economy increases with investment in transport infrastructure was accepted. Second, it was also hypothesized that there was no significant contribution to the GDP by the transport sector. Analysis of Variance was used with Multiple Regressions for testing this hypothesis. The output showed a significant R value of 0.98 and R² of 0.97. Therefore,  the alternative hypothesis which states that there was significant contribution to the GDP by the transport sector was equally accepted. Insufficient funding was identified as the bane of growth of the transport sector. The study finally suggests that policymakers should prioritize appropriate and adequate investment on transport infrastructure towards building a viable economy.

Keywords: infrastructure, transport, investment, economy