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JAMB • Economics • Syllabus

JAMB Economics Syllabus for UTME 2027

The JAMB Economics syllabus is the list of topics UTME Economics questions are set from, with the exam body's notes on how far each topic goes. Use it as a revision checklist: pick a topic, read what it covers, then practise past questions on it until you can answer them in exam time.

Syllabus content © The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board. Source. Summaries marked “Our summary” are written by DeeepSolve.

Foundations of economics

Our summary: What economics studies, how economic systems answer its basic questions, and the methods and tools used to analyse economic data.

Economics as a science

Our summary: Wants, scarcity and choice, the basic economic problems, and using the production possibility frontier to think about them.

Contents

  • Basic conceptsJAMB note: wants, scarcity, choice, scale of preference, opportunity cost, rationality, production, distribution, consumption.
  • Economic problems of: what, how and for whom to produce and efficiency of resource use
  • Application of PPF to solution of economic problems

Objectives

  • compare various concepts in economics and their applications;
  • interpret graphs/schedules in relation to the concepts;
  • identify economic problems;
  • proffer solutions to economic problems.

Economic systems

Our summary: Free enterprise, centrally planned and mixed economies, and current economic reforms in Nigeria.

Contents

  • Types and characteristics of free enterprise, centrally planned and mixed economies
  • Solutions to economic problems under different systems
  • Contemporary issues in economic systems (economic reforms e.g. deregulation, banking sector consolidation, cash policy reform)

Objectives

  • compare the various economic systems;
  • apply the knowledge of economic systems to contemporary issues in Nigeria;
  • proffer solutions to economic problems in different economic systems.

Methods and tools of economic analysis

Our summary: Ways of reasoning in economics and the tables, graphs and statistics used to read economic data.

Contents

  • Scientific approachJAMB note: (i) inductive and deductive methods; (ii) positive and normative reasoning.
  • Basic toolsJAMB note: (i) tables, charts and graphs; (ii) measures of central tendency: mean, median and mode, and their applications; (iii) measures of dispersion: variance, standard deviation, range and their applications; (iv) merits and demerits of the tools.

Objectives

  • distinguish between the various forms of reasoning;
  • apply these forms of reasoning to real life situations;
  • use the tools to interpret economic data;
  • analyse economic data using the tools;
  • understand the merits and demerits of the tools.

Demand, supply and prices

Our summary: How buyers and sellers behave and how their choices set prices and quantities in a market.

The theory of demand

Our summary: What decides how much people want to buy, the types of demand and how to compute and use elasticity of demand.

Contents

  • Meaning and determinants of demand
  • Demand schedules and curves
  • The distinction between change in quantity demanded and change in demand
  • Types of demandJAMB note: composite, derived, competitive and joint demand.
  • Types, nature and determinants of elasticity and their measurementJAMB note: price, income and cross elasticity of demand.
  • Importance of elasticity of demand to consumers, producers and government

Objectives

  • identify the factors determining demand;
  • interpret demand curves from demand schedules;
  • differentiate between change in quantity demanded and change in demand;
  • compare the various types of demand and their interrelationships;
  • relate the determinants to the nature of elasticity;
  • compute elasticities;
  • interpret elasticity coefficients in relation to real life situations.

The theory of consumer behaviour

Our summary: Utility, indifference curves and budget lines, and how a consumer reaches equilibrium.

Contents

  • Basic conceptsJAMB note: (i) utility (cardinal, ordinal, total, average and marginal utilities); (ii) indifference curve and budget line.
  • Diminishing marginal utility and the law of demand
  • Consumer equilibrium using the indifference curve and marginal analyses
  • Effects of shift in the budget line and the indifference curve
  • Consumer surplus and its applications

Objectives

  • explain the various utility concepts;
  • apply the law of demand using the marginal utility analysis;
  • use indifference curve and marginal analyses to determine consumer equilibrium;
  • relate the income and substitution effects;
  • apply consumer surplus to real life situations.

The theory of supply

Our summary: What decides how much producers offer for sale, the types of supply and how to compute elasticity of supply.

Contents

  • Meaning and determinants of supply
  • Supply schedules and supply curves
  • The distinction between change in quantity supplied and change in supply
  • Types of supplyJAMB note: joint/complementary, competitive and composite.
  • Elasticity of supplyJAMB note: determinants, measurements, nature and applications.

Objectives

  • identify the factors determining supply;
  • interpret supply curves from supply schedules;
  • differentiate between change in quantity supplied and change in supply;
  • compare the various types of supply and their interrelationships;
  • relate the determinants to the nature of elasticity;
  • compute elasticity coefficients;
  • interpret the coefficients in relation to real life situations.

The theory of price determination

Our summary: How the price system works, how equilibrium price and quantity are found, and what price legislation does.

Contents

  • The concepts of market and price
  • Functions of the price system
  • Equilibrium price and quantity in product and factor markets
  • Price legislation and its effects
  • The effects of changes in supply and demand on equilibrium price and quantity
  • Simple linear equation of demand and supply

Objectives

  • explain the concepts of market and price;
  • examine the functions of the price system;
  • evaluate the effects of government interference with the price system;
  • differentiate between minimum and maximum price legislation;
  • interpret the effects of changes in supply and demand on equilibrium price and quantity;
  • determine the equilibrium value of price and quantity.

Production, costs and market structures

Our summary: How firms produce, what production costs and earns, and how firms behave in different kinds of market.

The theory of production

Our summary: Total, average and marginal product, economies of scale, returns to scale and the producer's equilibrium.

Contents

  • Meaning and types of production
  • Concepts of production and their interrelationships (TP, AP, MP and the law of variable proportion)
  • Division of labour and specialization
  • Scale of productionJAMB note: internal and external economies of scale and their implications.
  • Production functions and returns to scale
  • Producers' equilibrium isoquant-isocost and marginal analyses
  • Factors affecting productivity

Objectives

  • relate TP, AP and MP with the law of variable proportion;
  • compare internal and external economies of scale in production and their effects;
  • identify the types of production functions;
  • compare the different types of returns to the scale and their implications;
  • determine the firm's equilibrium position using the isoquant-isocost and marginal analyses;
  • identify the factors affecting productivity.

Theory of costs and revenue

Our summary: The different measures of a firm's costs and revenue, short-run and long-run costs, and the link between marginal cost and supply.

Contents

  • The concepts of costJAMB note: fixed, variable, total, average and marginal.
  • The concepts of revenueJAMB note: total, average and marginal revenue.
  • Accountants' and economists' notions of cost
  • Short-run and long-run costs
  • The marginal cost and the supply curve of firm

Objectives

  • explain the various cost concepts;
  • differentiate between accountants' and economists' notions of costs;
  • interpret the short-run and long-run costs curves;
  • establish the relationship between marginal cost and supply curve;
  • explain the various revenue concepts.

Market structures

Our summary: Equilibrium under perfect competition and imperfect markets, and when a firm breaks even or shuts down.

Contents

  • Perfectly competitive marketJAMB note: (i) assumptions and characteristics; (ii) short-run and long-run equilibrium of a perfect competitor.
  • Imperfect marketJAMB note: (i) pure monopoly, discriminatory monopoly and monopolistic competition; (ii) short-run and long-run equilibrium positions.
  • Break-even/shut-down analysis in the various markets

Objectives

  • analyse the assumptions and characteristics of a perfectly competitive market;
  • differentiate between short-run and long-run equilibrium of a perfectly competitive firm;
  • analyse the assumptions and characteristics of imperfect markets;
  • differentiate between the short-run and long-run equilibria of imperfectly competitive firms;
  • establish the conditions for the break-even/shut down of firms.

National income, money and public finance

Our summary: How a country's income is measured and determined, how money and financial institutions work, and how government raises and spends money.

National income

Our summary: GNP, GDP and related measures, the circular flow of income, the multiplier and equilibrium national income.

Contents

  • The concepts of GNP, GDP, NI, NNP
  • National income measurements and their problems
  • Uses and limitations of national income estimates
  • The circular flow of income (two and three-sector models)
  • The concepts of consumption, investment and savings
  • The multiplier and its effects
  • Elementary theory of income determination and equilibrium national income

Objectives

  • identify the major concepts in national income;
  • compare the different ways of measuring national income;
  • examine their problems;
  • determine the uses and limitations of national income estimates;
  • interpret the circular flow of income using the two and three-sector models;
  • calculate the various multipliers;
  • evaluate their effects on equilibrium national income;
  • explain the concepts of consumption, investment and savings.

Money and inflation

Our summary: What money is and does, the quantity theory of money, and the measurement and control of inflation and deflation.

Contents

  • Types, characteristics and functions of money
  • Demand for money and the supply of money
  • Quantity theory of money (Fisher equation)
  • The value of money and the price level
  • InflationJAMB note: types, measurements, effects and control.
  • DeflationJAMB note: measurements, effects and control.

Objectives

  • explain the types, characteristics and functions of money;
  • identify the factors affecting the demand for and the supply of money;
  • examine the relationship between the value of money and the price level;
  • identify the components in the quantity theory of money;
  • examine the causes and effects of inflation;
  • calculate the consumer price index;
  • interpret the consumer price index;
  • examine ways of controlling inflation;
  • examine the causes, measurement, effects and control of deflation.

Financial institutions

Our summary: Banks and other financial institutions, money and capital markets, money creation and monetary policy in Nigeria.

Contents

  • Types and functions of financial institutions (traditional, central bank, mortgage banks, merchant banks, insurance companies, building societies)
  • The role of financial institutions in economic development
  • Money and capital markets
  • Financial sector regulations
  • Deposit money banks and the creation of money
  • Monetary policy and its instruments
  • Challenges facing financial institutions in Nigeria

Objectives

  • identify the types and functions of financial institutions;
  • explain the roles of financial institutions in economic development;
  • distinguish between the money and capital markets;
  • identify the various financial sector regulators and their functions;
  • explain the money creation process and its challenges;
  • examine the various monetary policy instruments and their effects;
  • appraise the challenges facing the financial institutions in Nigeria.

Public finance

Our summary: Fiscal policy, government revenue and taxation, public spending and debt, and revenue allocation in Nigeria.

Contents

  • Meaning and objectives
  • Fiscal policy and its instruments
  • Sources of government revenue (taxes, royalties, rents, grants and aids)
  • Principles of taxation
  • Tax incidence and its effects
  • The effects of public expenditure
  • Government budget and public debts
  • Revenue allocation and resource control in Nigeria

Objectives

  • identify the objectives of public finance;
  • explain fiscal policy and its instruments;
  • compare the various sources of government revenue;
  • analyse the principles of taxation;
  • analyse the incidence of taxation and its effects;
  • examine the effects of public expenditure on the economy;
  • examine the types and effects of budgets;
  • highlight the criteria for revenue allocation in Nigeria and their impact.

Growth, development and the Nigerian economy

Our summary: How economies grow and develop, with a focus on Nigeria's agriculture, industry, natural resources, businesses and population.

Economic growth and development

Our summary: Growth versus development, how they are measured, what drives them and how Nigeria plans for development.

Contents

  • Meaning and scope
  • Indicators of growth and development
  • Factors affecting growth and development
  • Problems of development in Nigeria
  • Development planning in Nigeria

Objectives

  • distinguish between economic growth and development;
  • highlight the indicators of growth and development;
  • identify the factors affecting growth and development;
  • examine the problems of development in Nigeria;
  • examine the role of planning in development.

Agriculture in Nigeria

Our summary: The types and role of agriculture in Nigeria, its problems and policies, and why farm incomes are unstable.

Contents

  • Types and features
  • The role of agriculture in economic development
  • Problems of agriculture
  • Agricultural policies and their effects
  • Instability in agricultural incomes (causes, effects and solutions)

Objectives

  • identify the types and features of agriculture;
  • examine the characteristics and problems of agriculture;
  • assess the role of agriculture in economic development;
  • appraise agricultural policies in Nigeria;
  • evaluate the causes and effects of instability in agricultural incomes.

Industry and industrialization

Our summary: Where industries locate in Nigeria, strategies of industrialization, and how industry supports development.

Contents

  • Concepts and effects of location and localization of industry in Nigeria
  • Strategies and industrialization in Nigeria
  • Industrialization and economic development in Nigeria
  • Funding and management of business organization
  • Factors determining the size of firms

Objectives

  • differentiate between location and localization of industry;
  • identify the factors influencing the location and localization of industry;
  • examine the problems of industrialization;
  • appraise some industrialization strategies;
  • examine the role of industry in economic development.

Natural resources and the Nigerian economy

Our summary: Nigeria's major natural resources, the oil and non-oil sectors, and the challenges of exploiting resources.

Contents

  • Development of major natural resources (petroleum, gold, diamond, timber etc.)
  • Contributions of the oil and the non-oil sectors to the Nigerian economy
  • Linkage effects
  • Upstream/downstream of the oil sector
  • The role of NNPC and OPEC in the oil sector
  • Challenges facing natural resources exploitation

Objectives

  • trace the development of the major natural resources in Nigeria;
  • understand the contribution of the oil and the non-oil sectors to the Nigerian economy;
  • establish the linkages between the natural resources and other sectors;
  • analyse the environmental effects of exploitation activities in Nigeria;
  • distinguish between the upstream and downstream activities in the oil sector;
  • examine the roles of NNPC and OPEC in the oil sector;
  • suggest ways of controlling the effects of natural resources exploitation.

Business organizations

Our summary: Private and public enterprises, how they are funded and run, what decides their size, and privatization.

Contents

  • Private enterprises (e.g. sole-proprietorship, partnership, limited liability companies and cooperative societies)
  • Problems of private enterprises
  • Public enterprises and their problems
  • Funding and management of business organizations
  • Factors determining the size of firms
  • Privatization and commercialization as solutions to the problems of public enterprises

Objectives

  • compare the types and basic features of private business organization;
  • appreciate the financing and management problems of business organizations;
  • identify the features of public enterprises;
  • identify the factors determining the size of firms;
  • differentiate between privatization and commercialization;
  • compare the advantages and disadvantages of privatization and commercialization.

Population

Our summary: Population theories, the census, population size, structure and distribution, and population policy in Nigeria.

Contents

  • Meaning and theories
  • Census: importance and problems
  • Size and growth: over-population, under-population and optimum population
  • Structure and distribution
  • Population policy and economic development

Objectives

  • analyse some population theories;
  • examine the relevance of the theories to Nigeria;
  • examine the uses and limitations of census data;
  • identify determinants of the size, composition and growth of population;
  • analyse the structure and distribution of population;
  • appraise government population policy in Nigeria.

The international economy

Our summary: How Nigeria trades with the rest of the world and the international organisations it works with.

International trade

Our summary: Why countries trade, the balance of payments, Nigeria's foreign trade and how exchange rates are set.

Contents

  • Meaning and basis for international trade (absolute and comparative costs etc.)
  • Balance of trade and balance of payments: problems and corrective measures
  • Composition and direction of Nigeria's foreign trade
  • Exchange rate: meaning, types and determination

Objectives

  • examine the basis for international trade;
  • differentiate between absolute and comparative advantages;
  • distinguish between balance of trade and balance of payments and their corrective measures;
  • highlight the problems of balance of payments and their corrective measures;
  • examine the composition and direction of Nigeria's foreign trade;
  • identify the types of exchange rates;
  • examine how exchange rates are determined.

International economic organizations

Our summary: ECOWAS, the AU, the IMF, the World Bank, the WTO and other bodies, and what they mean for Nigeria.

Contents

  • Roles and relevance of international organizations e.g. ECOWAS, AU, EU, ECA, IMF, EEC, OECD, World Bank, IBRD, WTO, ADB and UNCTAD etc. to Nigeria

Objectives

  • identify the various economic organizations and their functions;
  • evaluate their relevance to the Nigerian economy.

Factor markets and incomes

Our summary: How land, labour, capital and enterprise are rewarded, and the causes of and solutions to unemployment.

Factors of production and their theories

Our summary: The factors of production and their rewards, how wages, interest and profits are set, and unemployment in Nigeria.

Contents

  • Types, features and rewards
  • Determination of wages, interest and profits
  • Theories: marginal productivity theory of wages and liquidity preference theory
  • Factor mobility and efficiency
  • Unemployment and its solutions

Objectives

  • identify the types, features and rewards of factors of production;
  • analyse the determination of wages, interest and profits;
  • interpret the marginal productivity and liquidity preference theories;
  • examine factors mobility and efficiency;
  • examine the types and causes of unemployment in Nigeria;
  • suggest solutions to unemployment in Nigeria.

More from the JAMB Economics syllabus

General objectives

  • The aim of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) syllabus in Economics is to prepare the candidates for the Board's examination. It is designed to test their achievement of the course objectives, which are to:
  • demonstrate sufficient knowledge and understanding of the basic concepts, tools and their general applications to economic analysis;
  • identify and explain the basic structures, operations and roles of the various economic units and institutions (national and international);
  • describe major economic activities – production, distribution and consumption;
  • identify and appraise the basic and current economic problems of society;
  • develop the competence to proffer solutions to economic problems identified.

Recommended texts

Economics: Exam Focus
Aderinto, A.A. et al (1996), Ibadan: University Press Plc.
Oxford Dictionary of Economics
Black, J. (1997), Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Economics Made Easy
Eyiyere, D.O. (1980), Benin City: Quality Publishers Ltd.
Countdown to SSCE/JME Economics
Fajana, F. et al (1999), Ibadan: Evans.
Round-up Economics
Falodun, A.B. et al (1997), Lagos: Longman.
Modern Microeconomics
Koutsoyiannis, A. (1979), London: Macmillan.
An Introduction to Positive Economics
Lipsey, R.G. (1997), Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Economics
Samuelson, P. and Nordhaus, W. (1989), Singapore: McGraw-Hill.
New System Economics: a Senior Secondary Course
Udu, E. and Agu, G.A. (2005), Ibadan: Africana FIRST Publishers Ltd.
Economics
Wonnacott and Wonnacott (1979), New York: McGraw-Hill.
What is Micro-Economics?
Brownson-oton, Richard (2010), Niky Printing and Publishing coy.
What is Macro-Economics?
Brownson-oton, Richard (2010), Niky Printing and Publishing coy.

Syllabus content © The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board. Taken from https://ibass.jamb.gov.ng/static/media/Economics.da2a30ae8659e29c8bb4.pdf (UTME).

DeeepSolve is an independent study platform and is not affiliated with JAMB. The topic lists, notes and exam scheme are the exam body's wording; “Our summary” lines are ours. If anything here differs from what JAMB publishes for your sitting, follow JAMB.