Foreign firms repatriated $5.86 billion from the Nigerian economy between October 2022 and March 2023, with $5.13 billion repatriated as dividends by foreign investors. This increase in dividend payments to non-residents widened the deficit in Nigeria’s primary income account to $2.69 billion in Q1 2023 from $2.26 billion in Q4 2022.
The primary income account covers the compensation of employees and investment income, including profits, interest, dividends, and royalties received by or paid to direct and portfolio investors. This outflow of funds undermines the productivity of Nigeria’s real sector as foreign exchange resources that could have been used for economic development are used to service external debt and repatriate profits.
