JAMB Economics 2024 past questions

Checked by the Skolra question team · Last updated 23 October 2026

Ten questions from the 2024 JAMB Economics paper, with answers and explanations. We hold 75 questions from this paper, and the Skolra app has all of them.

JAMB Economics 2024 questions and answers

1. 1.

   The system of farming which involves the use of a large hectare of land planted with economic crops is known as

   1. A
      Subsistence farming
   2. B
      Plantation agriculture
      Correct
   3. C
      Shifting cultivation
   4. D
      Mixed farming
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: B

   Plantation agriculture is farming carried out on a large hectare of land devoted to a single economic (cash) crop such as rubber, oil palm, cocoa or sugar cane, usually with hired labour and mechanization for export or industrial use.

   Mixed farming combines both crop cultivation and livestock rearing on the same land, which is a different arrangement entirely, not defined by land size.

2. 2.

   If government in a fiscal year has its revenue receipts less than the expenditure, such country is having

   1. A
      balanced budget
   2. B
      trade deficit
   3. C
      budget deficit
      Correct
   4. D
      budget surplus
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: C

   Budget deficit is correct. A country's fiscal position is described by comparing government revenue receipts to government expenditure in a given fiscal year.

   When revenue receipts are less than expenditure, government is spending more than it earns, so it has a shortfall that must be financed through borrowing or other means. This situation is called a budget deficit.

3. 3.

   The largest component of national income in developing countries consist of

   1. A
      Mining and mineral extraction
   2. B
      Services and commerce
   3. C
      Agricultural output
      Correct
   4. D
      Industrial and manufacturing output
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: C

   Agricultural output is correct.

   Most developing countries, Nigeria inclusion, are largely agrarian economies. The majority of the population is engaged in farming, livestock rearing, and related primary production, so agriculture contributes the largest share to national income compared with other sectors.

4. 4.

   A price floor is usually fixed

   1. A
      below the equilibrium price
   2. B
      by the forces of demand and supply
   3. C
      equal to the equilibrium price
   4. D
      above the equilibrium price
      Correct
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: D

   A price floor is usually fixed above the equilibrium price.

   A price floor (minimum price) is a government-imposed lower limit on the price of a good, service, or factor of production (such as labour), meant to protect sellers or producers. Examples in Nigeria include minimum wage laws and minimum guaranteed prices for agricultural produce.

5. 5.

   What is the median term in the distribution below; 14, 13 29,15,13,17,12.

   1. A
      14
      Correct
   2. B
      15
   3. C
      13
   4. D
      17
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: A

   Arranging the data in order: 12, 13, 13, 14, 15, 17, 29.

   There are 7 values, so the median is the value at position (7+1)/2 = 4th position.

   Counting to the 4th value: 12, 13, 13, 14, 15, 17, 29 → the median is 14.

6. 6.

   The following will occur when maximum price is fixed below the free market price EXCEPT that

   1. A
      A black market will emerge as buyers seek the good at higher, illegal prices
   2. B
      Queues and rationing will be used to allocate the scarce commodity
   3. C
      Excess demand will occur as buyers want more than is available
   4. D
      Supply will exceed demand, creating a surplus of the commodity
      Correct
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: D

   A maximum price is a price ceiling set below the free market equilibrium price, usually to protect consumers from high prices.

   At this artificially low price, the quantity that buyers want (demand) is greater than the quantity sellers are willing to offer (supply). This gap is called excess demand or shortage, so excess demand occurring is a normal and expected consequence, not the exception.

7. 7.

   The following are the objectives of agricultural policies in Nigeria EXCEPT

   A. provision of food
   B. provision of agricultural raw materials to industrial sectors
   C. increasing prices of agricultural Inputs
   D. creation of rural employment

   1. A
      Creation of rural employment
   2. B
      Provision of agricultural raw materials to industrial sectors
   3. C
      Provision of food
   4. D
      Increasing prices of agricultural inputs
      Correct
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: D

   Nigeria's agricultural policies are designed to boost farming and rural development. Their key objectives include ensuring adequate food provision for the population, supplying raw materials such as cotton, cocoa, rubber and grains to industrial sectors, and creating rural employment to reduce poverty and rural-urban migration.

8. 8.

   In the long-run, a firm must shut down if its average revenue is

   1. A
      Greater than average fixed cost
   2. B
      Less than average variable cost
   3. C
      Equal to marginal cost
   4. D
      Less than average cost
      Correct
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: D

   Correct answer: average revenue less than average cost.

   In the long run, every cost a firm faces is variable — there is no fixed cost to "sunk" through, since the firm can sell off or redeploy all its plant and equipment. So the shut-down test in the long run is simply whether the firm can cover its full average cost (which already includes normal profit). If average revenue (price) is less than average cost, the firm is not even covering the cost of staying in business, so it must shut down and exit the industry.

9. 9.

   The demand for factors of production is said to be

   1. A
      an autonomous demand
   2. B
      a derived demand
      Correct
   3. C
      a composite demand
   4. D
      a joint demand
   Show answerHide answer

   Answer: B

   The demand for factors of production (land, labour, capital, entrepreneur) is called a derived demand because these factors are not wanted for their own sake, but because of what they help to produce. A firm employs labour and capital only because there is demand for the final goods and services those factors help create. For example, bakers demand flour-milling labour because consumers demand bread — if the demand for bread falls, the demand for that labour falls too.

10. 10.

    The satisfaction derived from the consumption of a commodity is referred to as

    1. A
       Utility
       Correct
    2. B
       Consumer surplus
    3. C
       Marginal product
    4. D
       Value
    Show answerHide answer

    Answer: A

    Utility is the economic term for the satisfaction or pleasure a consumer derives from consuming a commodity. It is the basic concept behind consumer behaviour theory and demand analysis.

    Value refers to the worth of a commodity, often expressed in exchange (what it can be traded for), not the satisfaction felt by the consumer, so it is not the right fit.

The questions come from past JAMB, WAEC and NECO papers. We use software to help write the answer options and explanations, and every answer is checked twice before it goes on the site. How we check

Spotted a wrong answer? Tell us from the app or on the contact page and we check it.

Practise all 75 questions we hold from the 2024 paper, on a timed CBT screen

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