OIL REVENUE AND THE PERFORMANCE OF THE NIGERIAN AGRICULTURE SECTOR (1981-2019)

Abstract

Over the years, several authors have attributed the decline in Nigerian agricultural production to the massive inflow of oil revenue that resulted from the discovery of crude oil. This paper sought to investigate the relationship between oil revenue and agricultural sector in a bid to find answers to the question “was the performance of the Nigerian agricultural sector affected by the quantum of oil revenue received by the country?” Secondary data for the period 1981-2019 were collected and analysed. Regression analysis was used to achieve the objectives of the study. Highlights of the findings of the study revealed a highly significant (P-value of 0.000) relationship between oil revenue and the performance of agriculture sector and the forestry sub-sector; highly significant (P-value of 0.003) inverse relationship between oil revenue and the performance of livestock sub-sector and no significant relationship between the oil revenue and the performance of the crop production and fishing sub-sectors in Nigeria over the study period.