Okon Joseph Umoh’s scientific contributions

This study explores the grey economy in Nigeria, characterized by unregistered businesses, informal labor markets, and cash-based transactions, which significantly shape the nation’s socio-economic landscape. It examines the scope, characteristics, and impact of the grey economy on Nigeria’s development, highlighting its dual role in providing livelihoods and contributing to economic activity, especially in rural areas. However, the study also addresses critical challenges, including high unemployment rates, bureaucratic barriers to formalization, limited access to finance, and weak regulatory enforcement, which hinder the transition of informal enterprises to the formal sector. The implications of the grey economy extend to fiscal concerns, such as revenue losses due to tax evasion, and labor issues, including the lack of protections for informal workers. Moreover, the grey economy perpetuates social inequalities, leaving many excluded from state-provided benefits. The research emphasizes the need for coordinated policy action, including simplifying the formalization process, expanding access to finance, and implementing awareness and training programs. By adopting a comprehensive approach, Nigeria can enhance economic resilience, improve governance, and promote social equity, ultimately fostering sustainable national development. This study contributes valuable insights for policymakers and stakeholders aiming to navigate the complexities of the grey economy and its implications for Nigeria’s future.

Nigeria’s economy, marked by its diverse sectors and emerging markets, presents a landscape ripe for financial innovations aimed at fostering economic growth. This study delves into the multifaceted nature of Nigeria’s emerging markets and explores the role of financial innovations in propelling economic development. By examining the evolution of financial instruments, regulatory frameworks, and market dynamics, this research elucidates the transformative potential of innovative financial practices in Nigeria. Furthermore, it investigates the impact of technological advancements, such as fintech solutions and digital banking platforms, on expanding financial inclusion and accessibility across various segments of the population. Through empirical analysis and case studies, the study assesses the effectiveness of these innovations in addressing key challenges facing Nigeria’s economy, including access to credit, capital formation, and risk management. Moreover, it examines the interplay between financial innovation, government policies, and institutional frameworks in shaping the trajectory of economic growth in Nigeria’s emerging markets. The findings underscore the importance of fostering an enabling environment that encourages innovation, entrepreneurship, and sustainable financial practices to drive inclusive economic growth and development. This research contributes to the discourse on financial innovation and economic development in emerging markets, particularly within the context of Nigeria’s dynamic economic landscape.

This research use time series analysis to examine Nigeria's economic dynamics, concentrating on the link between Real Gross Domestic Product (RGDP), Inflation (IFR), Interest (INT), and Crude Oil Price. The information covers the years 2006 to 2022 and gives insights into how the country has changed over time. The results show a positive trend in RGDP, indicating economic expansion. Inflation rates vary, suggesting the presence of both inflationary and deflationary influences. Interest rates are constant, while crude oil prices are volatile, affecting Nigeria's oildependent economy. A somewhat positive association between Crude Oil Price and independent variables is revealed using regression analysis. The statistical significance of the independent variables, on the other hand, is only slightly supported. The ANOVA table validates the regression model's overall significance, indicating an influential independent variable. The influence of independent factors on the dependent variable is demonstrated by coefficients, but their significance falls short of traditional values. The correlation matrix reveals an inverse link between RGDP and output/crude oil exports. There are weak positive connections between RGDP and inflation, as well as crude oil prices and inflation. Interest rates and crude oil exports do not have a strong relationship with crude oil prices. These findings helped to comprehend Nigeria's economic dynamics and illustrate the complexities of varied interactions. To go deeper into certain hypotheses, more study is required. The study emphasizes the significance of understanding the impact of oil price changes on the Nigerian economy in order to drive appropriate policy responses and the necessity for economic diversification.

The notions of sustainable development and the green economy are inextricably linked, with just a thin line separating them. Looking at the definitions of two different concepts, for example, a green economy is defined by the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) as a system of economic activities related to the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services that improves human well-being over time while avoiding significant environmental risks or ecological scarcities for future generations. However, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which inspired the GE, called for a Green Economy or, better yet, a Global Green New Deal (GGND). The GGND is a set of large-scale, internationally coordinated stimulus packages and policy actions that have the potential to expedite global economic recovery in the short term while also building the foundation for long-term sustained growth. It envisioned an economy devoted to healing the world’s damage, one that thrived through the establishment of a slew of new firms

The land is deteriorating. Now we’ll look at the oceans. With the continued loss of terrestrial resources and the need for major economic gains, littoral states have increased their efforts to achieve a “blue economy.” Nigeria, as a country with a large number of littoral component states and long waterways, has not been left out in this pursuit, making the creation of a Nigerian blue economy a need for the country’s benefit. The pursuit of a blue economy, on the other hand, goes beyond national borders and takes on an international dimension. The blue economy, also known as the marine economic system, is an ecosystem of economic activities centered on commerce and action in and around huge bodies of water, such as oceans, that are continued to survive ecological responsibility. Fishing, wastewater treatment, tourism, seaside hotels and restaurants, power (wind energy and tidal power), and transportation are all part of the economy (ships, bargers, rigs, and other floating vessels). In value terms added and employment, the “Blue Economy” might outperform the world economy as a whole. Around the world, blue economy activities and ideas are showing to be varied, vibrant, and broad. As a result, this debate emerges, with the goal of determining how this ideal of a Nigerian blue economy may become a reality.

Despite the various monetary regimes that have been adopted by the Central Bank of Nigeria over the years, inflation remains a major threat to Nigeria’s economic growth. This study seeks to examine the relationship between monetary policy and economic growth in Nigeria. Starting from the nature and direction of causation, the Granger pair-wise causality model was used, while a multiple regression model was formulated based on the theoretical background of the study. The error correction mechanism (ECM) method was used to estimate the equation, to evaluate the inherent connectivity between monetary policy and economic growth and also the impact of money supply, interest rate, and exchange rate on the rate of economic growth in Nigeria. The result showed that there is a unidirectional causal relationship between money supply and economic growth in Nigeria. Secondly, interest rates and exchange rates have a negative effect on economic growth, while money supply has a positive effect on economic growth. As a result, the macroeconomic variables that policymakers should regulate in order to reduce inflation and ensure economic growth in Nigeria are the money supply, exchange rate, and interest rate.

This study examines the role of bank credits on poverty reduction in Nigeria. Despite different measures by the government in channelling bank credits to the private sector. Poverty is still one of the greatest challenges facing Nigeria today. The study adopts econometrics quantitative methods in analysing annual time series data to achieve the objectives of the study. From the results, the granger causality test shows that there is no causal relationship between bank credit and poverty level in Nigeria. There is a unidirectional causal relationship between agricultural loan and poverty flowing from poverty. The OLS result indicate that there is a significant positive impact of bank credit on poverty reduction and there is a significant negative impact of agricultural loan on poverty level in Nigeria. This study recommends that federal government should ensure agriculture loan is redirected to the proper farmers in the country to reduce poverty in the country.

Technology is the application of scientific knowledge for practical purpose, especially in industry, advances in computer technology, machinery and devices developed from scientific knowledge. It will reduce the industry's ability to spend money on new technology. Technologies, most often, are invented or developed in one country but utilized and enjoyed in different parts of the world. Technology capability is the capacity to produce more efficiently to establish better production facilities and to use the experience gained in production and investment to adapt and improve the technology in use. The processes through which technology invented in one part of the world is utilized or enjoyed in other parts of the world is what is generally referred to as technology transfer or technology diffusion. The need for technology transfer from the LDCs from the developed countries arises on the following grounds; to overcome backwardness, to Increase Productivity, to Reduce Poverty, Inequalities and Unemployment, to Increase the Growth Rate, to Fill Technological Gap, to Develop Basic and Key Industries and Infrastructure, to Make LDCs Competitive, to Solve Balance of Payment Problem, to Solve SocioEconomic Problems, to Save Time and Money. The purposeful application of information in the designed, production and utilization of goods and services. The most appropriate package of technology transfer should be one that contributes to increasing the level of technology, generating employment, reducing inequalities and increasing the growth rate in the LDCs, the main way of doing this is to build on what can be obtained from abroad while developing local capabilities in areas where it takes the most sense. Technology also extends to services, manufacturing, and agriculture, creativity in production planning, creativity in marketing and innovative management. It is the wider sense that we should be discussing the need, channel and problems of technology transfer from the developed nations to developing (LDCS) countries like Nigeria.