The World Bank has said Nigeria’s quest to build a $1tn economy by 2050 will depend largely on how urgently it invests in early childhood development, warning that productivity gaps formed before age five could weaken long-term growth.
The Lead, Early Years Programme at the World Bank, Ritgak Tilley-Gyado, said this in Abuja on Tuesday during a high-level dialogue on Early Childhood, Productivity, and Nigeria’s Growth Choices organised by SBM Intelligence in collaboration with the World Bank and Nigerian think tanks.
Linking early childhood outcomes directly to Nigeria’s economic ambition, she asked, “Can Nigeria become a trillion-dollar economy by 2050 without deliberately investing in its youngest citizens? By then, the cohort of children that are aged 0-5 will be 15-21 years, ripe, active, and ready to participate in the labour force or about to be.”
She argued that debates about macroeconomic reforms, infrastructure, and jobs often overlook the foundation of human capital, which is formed in the earliest years of life.
According to her, gaps in learning, health, and skills frequently begin before a child turns five and become difficult and costly to reverse later.
