The Presidency has said that the nation’s economic ?outlook remains bright notwithstanding the drop in Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

In a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday by the Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Publicity, Mr Laolu Akande, the Federal Government said the remaining part of the year would be better.

The National Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday released the long-awaited GDP figures for the second quarter of 2016 with the GDP growth rate sliding further from -0.36 per cent in the first quarter to -2.06 per cent year-on-year.

Quoting the Special Adviser to the President on Economic Matters, Adeyemi Dipeolu, the statement said the recession would not last because many of the challenges faced in the first half either no longer existed or had been eased.

The statement noted that  the just released GDP figures for the 2016 second quarter by the NBS, while? confirming a temporary decline, has also indicated a hopeful expectation in the country’s economic trajectory.

It also said that apart from? the growth recorded in the agriculture and solid mineral sectors, the Nigerian economy, in response to the policies of the Buhari presidency, was also doing better than what the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had estimated with clear indications that the second half of the year would be even much better.

The statement said the Buhari presidency would continue to work diligently on the economy and engage with all stakeholders to ensure that beneficial policy initiatives were actively pursued and the dividends delivered to the Nigerian people.

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