Effect of Substance Abuse on Nigeria’s Economic Performance

Purpose of the study: This study investigated the effect of substance abuse on the real growth rate in Nigeria between 1993 and 2017. The study specifically examined the period-based impact of substance abuse prevalence and rehabilitated individual drug addicts on the actual growth rate of the Nigerian economy. Methodology: Autoregressive distributed lag and co-integration/bound test techniques were employed to analyze the data obtained. In between, correlation analysis and preliminary tests were carried out. Main findings: The study found out that substance abuse and rehabilitated drug individuals have a significant impact on economic performance. While substance abuse has a significant negative impact, rehabilitated, individual drug addicts have a significant positive impact. However, in the long run, there was no indication of a significant impact on the Nigerian economy. Research limitations/implications: This study will be of use to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and most drug control programs in many countries. The Ministries of Economic Planning to examine the extent to which drug abuse has had an economic impact. Novelty/Originality of this study: Economic analysis showcasing the effect of drug abuse prevalence and rehabilitated individuals on economic performance is quite scanty. This work creates a good reference point in areas of health economics and macroeconomics generally. It allows readers to know the genesis of drug trafficking and abuse in Nigeria.