As a girl, I have been opportune to witness some girl/women things, such as labour and childbirth. I've assisted a few persons go through some of these experiences, and I know how painful normal labour can be in itself, and how everyone dreads a prolonged labour (including the healthcare experts, as they fully understand what's at stake).
Now, imagine for a moment, what it would feel like going through the constant contraction of labour, and the pains associated with it, not for 18 hours as should be for a normal labour, nor for a day or less than two days if labour is prolonged, but for weeks, months, years, and almost a decade. That's what the inflation situation in Nigeria has been like in the past decade, and we see no hope/end in sight.
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Under-Reported?
Going through some news article to gather more insights in the state of inflation in Nigeria, I am surprised to see reports like this: "Nigeria's inflation rate rises to 22.04%", however there is more to such reports, here is what suffixes the quoted report: "third consecutive increase in 2023" (The Cable, 2023).
The implication of this is simple, inflation is on autopilot in Nigeria, and unlike everything else that's been retrogressive, inflation has been progressing very well, and all weapons fashioned against it has not been properly channeled (so they always miss).
Leaving Economics Behind: Here are Personal Accounts
Personally, I have seen inflation grow to exponential heights, I can't start pulling all the figures online to report on this, but I can share my personal observations:
- Sachet water went from 10NGN per sachet to 20NGN per sachet (that is 100% increase).
- Median price for a new low end Android smartphone went from 25,000NGN to 40,000NGN (that is a 60% increase)
- Cars that should depreciate in value after years of use are now adding in value. A car purchased a little over 2 years ago at about 1million NGN was sold at over 2million in 2023, in Nigeria (where else have you seen such happen?)
- 2013, I was buying rim of A4 papers for 600NGN per rim, but currently it is selling for 4500NGN/rim (guess how much inflation we are talking about, 650% increase in price, that's outrageous in just about 10 years)
I can go on and on about the current state of inflation in my country but let's stop here.
Nothing is Being DONE?
I believe everyone is affected by this trend, that's in exception of a very few who benefits when things go wrong, like in this case of unrelenting inflation.
I believe the right authorities are putting in necessary efforts to nip this issue in its bud, but the question is, how much efforts are being put in place? and are these efforts good enough?
We Nigerians have for a long time been really worried how things progressively moves from bad to worse on a daily basis, but as individuals, we are very limited as to how much we can do to help the situation, so we wait on the relevant authorities, and unfortunately, they seem not to care at all, unless they have been badly wounded, which by all indications show that they haven't.
My Two Cents
While the impacts may be worse in some areas than others, the truth is that this issue of inflation is not a Nigerian-exclusive issue, it is a global one with deep-reaching ramifications, we all have already seen the massive job cuts globally, and the meagre growth in all aspects of the economy.
So, to help deal with it and cope in these trying times, it is good to reduce one's expenses by cutting out unnecessary expenditures. Another good thing is to purchase items in bulk where necessary, as it helps reduce the cost when compared to buying in a per unit basis. And most importantly, create a budget and always stick to it.
We will scale through these trying times, and in the end we will be alright!😎