INFLATION; How To Survive In Nigeria' Present Economy

   As inflation rate rises, surviving in Nigeria present economy has proven to be difficult for a common man whose income is nothing to write home about. Nigeria's  inflation rate which according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) surged to 20.77% in September 2022, up from 20.52% has indeed made life uncomfortable for citizen and businesses in Africa's largest economy.

  In 2018, a number of 83 million people(40%) lived below the poverty rate, 53 million(25%) were affected,  and as Nigeria’s population growth continues to bit poverty reduction, the number of Nigerians living in abject poverty is ready to rise  by 7.7 million between 2019 and 2024, World Bank revealed.

  Food inflation which comprises more than 50 percent of the inflation rate, can be described as a change in prices of food items over a period of time. The NBS in its Consumer report for September, attributed the decline in food inflation to a reduction in prices of some food items especially beans, tubers , palm oil and maize.

   The every day household food stuffs which has increased in price by,at least 200 per cent between 2015 and 2022, has constrained the purchasing power of the low income earners as many are unable to gain access to enough amount of cheap, sustaining and balanced meal in the right proportion. So the question is " how can a common man survives? 

  Cutting your coats according to your size will prevent a common man from jumping  into the pit of debts, this doesn't mean you shouldn't have eyes for good things, but planning above your regular income may put you into dept. Some individuals copy other people' lifestyle but fail to  consider the differences in income. Enroll your children in a school where you can afford the fees, changing the children from a private owned school to government or missionary schools will give a common man peace of mind. Seasonal foods is often available at a cheaper price such as tomatoes& pepper in general.

  Bulk buying help saves more money, Paying attention to the prices, as goods bought in large quantity sometimes comes with attractive discounts, buying planned or needed  goods will do an individual good. impulse buying is purchasing things which are not needed immediately. 

  The Nigeria government through the ministry of Agriculture, in media reports noted that global climate change which increases energy prices, scarcity of water for food production due to increased crop water use, affected  certain area,to become climatically unfavorable for production.

 The ministry stressed that extreme weather events, accompanied with climate change may cause sudden reductions in agricultural productivity, resulting to price increases . It also assured that comprehensive approach are being geared towards addressing these dirverse obstacles and brightening the potentials of the Nigeria’s livestock resources to boost employment opportunities, and enhance sustanance and earnings.

The World Bank in its economic overview updated in September, and posted on its website, precisely said "While the economy is projected to grow at an average of 3.2% in 2022-2024, growth outlook is subject to downside risks including further declines in oil production and heightened insecurity, Inequality, in terms of income and opportunities, remains high and has adversely affected poverty reduction".  "The lack of job opportunities is at the core of the high poverty levels, regional inequality, and social and political unrest. High inflation has also taken a toll on household’s welfare and high prices in 2020-2022 are likely to have pushed an additional 8 million Nigerians into poverty".

Its stated further that although Nigeria's economic growth has recovered from the pandemic induced recession in 2020, but macroeconomic stability crippled. "In the middle of  global commodity crisis, a depreciating currency, trade restrictions, and monetization of the deficit, inflation is surging and pushing millions of Nigerians into poverty". 

Analysing the figure according to the NBS, year-on-year, Kwara has the highest rate with 33.09 per cent, Kogi – 28.46 per cent, and Ebonyi – 27.41 per cent, while Kaduna – 18.84 per cent, Jigawa – 19.20 per cent and Sokoto recorded the slowest rise with 19.44 percent. 

In order to address the high poverty rates in the country,  the governments of Nigeria; Specifically, needs to buckle up on solving insecurity challenges, as this tend to be the biggest factor facing the agricultural sector responsible for food production. Many farmers have stopped farming as their lives are being threatened by herdsmen. Some states in the Northern parts like Benue, Niger, Bornu, Kaduna, lost numbers of their local farmers to herdsmen terrorists and Boko Haram terrorists.The country's security forces need to be well equipped to safeguard farmers as they embark on their daily activities.

  In order to bring food inflation rates into minimal, the government of Nigeria should make available and accessible single digit interest rate or no interest rate to small scale and startup business owners to boast productivity. By so doing, more hands will be on desk and thus, level of unemployment would drastically reduce.  

  Youths employment opportunities should be made  transparent in both government and the private sectors at large. Shunning the culture of "who you know at the top".Also seeking to employ individuals with longer years of experience for a particular post should be discouraged, as It's no longer news that many companies prefer to employ candidate with years of experiences, forgetting that there will always be a first job for everyone.

The working system in the country need to be more organized  in a different way, this will encourage the states to look inwards and embrace unused potentialities. It will also promote healthy competition

as it was during the First Republic.

 with the Northern Region boasting of the true pyramidsll

  Moreover, Government should provide incentives to encourage our youths to venture into farming business. You will agree with me that some graduates that studied  agricultural courses are no longer putting it into practice , rather, deviating to another sector. Government need to organise training and retraining on modern agricultural methods. This will definitely attractive those who have left the field to return back and put all hands on desk.

Sources: 

  Businessday.com

  Thisdaylive. com

   USNews.com