JAMB Syllabus for Economics
The purpose of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) syllabus in Economics is to help aid the candidates’ preparation for the Board’s examination. The JAMB syllabus is designed to test their achievement of the course objectives, which are to:
- Demonstrate sufficient knowledge and understanding of the basic concepts, tolls and their general applications to economic analysis;
- Identify and explain the basic structure, operations and roles of the various economics units and institutions (national and international)
- Describe major economic activities production, distribution and consumption;
- Identify and appraise the basic economic problems of society
- Develop the competence to proffer solutions to economic problems.
1. Economics as a Science
- Basic Concepts: Wants, Scarcity, choice, opportunity cost, Rationality, production, distribution, consumption etc
- Economic problems of: what, how and for whom to produce
2. Economic Systems
- Types: free enterprise, centrally planned and mixed economies
- Solutions to economic problems under different systems
- Contemporary issues in economic systems (e.g. economic reforms, deregulation etc).
3. Methods of Economic Analysis
- Scientific Approach:
- inductive and deductive methods
- positive and normative reasoning
- Basic Tools
- tables, charts and graphs
- measures of central tendency: mean, median and mode, and their applications.
- measures of dispersion; variance, standard deviation, range and their applications;
- merits and demerits of the tools.
4. The Theory of Demand
- Demand
- meaning and determinants of demand
- demand schedules and curves
- the distinction between change in quantity demanded and change in demand.
- Types of demand: Composite, derived, competitive etc
- Elasticity of demand: determinants, measurements, nature and applications (e.g. revenue).
- Effects of changes in the determinants (price, income and cross elasticities).
5. The Theory of Consumer Behaviour
- Basic Concepts:
- utility (cardinal, ordinal and marginal utilities)
- value in use and value in exchange
- 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.
6. The Theory of Supply
- Supply
- Meaning and determinants of supply
- Supply schedules and supply curves
- the distinction between change in quantity supplied and change in supply
- Types of Supply: Joint /complementary, competitive and composite
- Elasticity of Supply: determinants, measurements, nature and applications
7. The Theory of Price Determination
- The concepts of market and price
- Functions of the price system
- Price determination under a free market
- Price legislation and its effects
- The effects of changes in supply and demand on equilibrium price and quantity
8. The Theory of Production
- Concepts of production and their interrelationships (TP, AP, MP and the law of variable proportion).
- Scale of Production: Internal and external economies of scale and their implications.
- Production functions and returns to scale
- Producers’ equilibrium isoquant-isocost and marginal analyses.
9. Theory of Costs
- The concepts of cost: Fixed, Variable Average and Marginal
- Accountants’ and Economists’ notions of cost
- Short-run and long-run costs
- The marginal cost and the supply curve of firm.
10. Market Structure
- Perfectly competitive market:
- Assumptions and characteristics;
- Short-run and long-run equilibrium of a perfect competitor;
- Imperfect Market:
- Pure monopoly, discriminatory monopoly and monopolistic competition.
- Short-run and long-run equilibrium positions.
- Break-even/shut-down analysis in the various markets.
11. National Income
- Concepts: GNP, GDP, NI etc
- National Income measurements and their problems
- Uses of national incomes estimates
- The circular flow of income (three sector model)
- The multiplier concept.
- Elementary theory of income determination and equilibrium national income.
12. Money and Inflation
- Types and functions of money
- Demand for money and the supply of money
- Quantity Theory of money (Fisher equation)
- Inflation: Types, measurements, effects and control
13. Banking
- Types and functions of banks
- The creation of money
- Challenges facing the banking industry in Nigeria (reforms, consolidation)
- The role of banks in economic development
- Monetary policy and its instruments.
14. Public Finance
- Meaning and objectives
- Sources of government revenue (taxes royalties, etc)
- Principles of taxation
- The effects of public expenditure
- Government budget and public debts
- Revenue allocation and resource control in Nigeria
15. Economic Growth and Development
- Meaning and scope
- Indicators of growth and development
- Factors affecting growth and development
- Problems of development in Nigeria
- Developing planning in Nigeria.
16. Agriculture in Nigeria
- The role of agriculture in economic development;
- Characteristics and problems;
- Effects of agricultural policies;
- Instability in agricultural income (causes, effects and solutions)
17. Industry and Industrialization
- Concepts and effects of location and localization of industry in Nigeria;
- Problems of Industrialization strategies (e.g. export promotion, import substitution etc)
- SMEs and economic development in Nigeria
18. Petroleum and the Nigerian Economy
- Development of the petroleum industry in Nigeria;
- Contributions of petroleum to the Nigerian economy;
- Linkage effects;
- Upstream/downstream activities.
19. Business Organizations
- Private enterprises (e.g. sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability companies and cooperative societies)
- Problems of private enterprises;
- Public enterprises;
- Privatization and Commercialization as solutions to the problems of public enterprises.
20. Population
- Meaning and theories;
- Census: importance and problems.
- Size and growth: over-population, underpopulation and optimum population.
- Structure and distribution;
- Population policy and economic development.
21. International Trade
- 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.