How low purchasing power marred 2022 Christmas Celebration in Nigeria

 

Economic experts have disclosed that low purchasing power, occasioned by soaring inflation, marred this year’s Christmas celebration in Nigeria.

Outside the sparkling-looking and well-decorated Christmas trees in some public places and homes, the usual demand for rice, chicken, and clothing experienced during the festivity was missing.

For many Nigerians, 2022 has been the most challenging year. With 21.47 per cent year-on-year inflation, unabated insecurity, 33.3 percent unemployment rate, high poverty rate, slow Gross Domestic Product, GDP growth rate, and other economic miseries are the footprints of 2022.

Christmas festivity is usually greeted with high demand and increased spending worldwide; Nigeria’s situation this year was the reverse.

For instance, Mr Obinna Ozomena, a Garki International market trader in Abuja, lamented low patronage.

He says, “My business has never had it like this before, this Christmas witnessed the lowest patronage, and other traders are experiencing a similar thing”.

Another Trader in Suleja Market, Abubakar Yusuf, disclosed that his business witnessed low patronage this year.

He stated that this year’s Christmas was unlike other years, with massive business activities.

“I struggled to meet up with 35 per cent sales compared to last year. Usually, the demand for rice increases during the festive period, but this was not the case this Christmas”, he said.

Mr Musa Dogo, a servant in Abuja, said his monthly salary could no longer cater for basic needs without Christmas celebration.

“I told myself that if we must survive, the issue of buying chicken, rice and clothing won’t be a priority. First, as long as my family and I can eat twice daily, we are content. I cannot kill myself for a day or two celebration,” he said.

There is no better reason for the low business activities this Christmas than soaring inflation, which affected how much Nigerians could buy with a given amount of money. It is so bad that the prices of most food items such as yams, rice, onions, bread beans, tomatoes, and groundnut oil record daily price increases, with food inflation now standing at 23.13 per cent in November.

In a chat with DAILY POST on Monday, an Accounting and Financial Development don at Lead City University, Ibadan, Prof Godwin Oyedokun said Nigerians are over-stretched economically due to the harsh policies of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

“The issue of low purchasing power is affecting everybody. Those people who believe they have money in society would also part with a lot of money to buy the same thing that they would buy a year before this present government came on board.

“Nigerians are over-stressed by the Buhari’s administration as the price of virtually everything has gone up nationwide. I am not sure the minimum wage can buy a bag of rice, the situation has defied prayers. Government officials aren’t affected because Nigerians pay their bills. People can no longer travel to felicitate with their families because of transport costs. Nigerians are just managing what they have. It isn’t delightful, but there is nothing that can be done. I am praying that all inflation fundamentals work well next year.

Also, a financial inclusion/wealth management expert, Mr Idakolo Gbolade stated that there is no positive sign that 2023 will improve.

He said, “Christmas was marked low-key by most Nigerians because of low purchasing power. As is usual with festive seasons in Nigeria over the past 15 years, Nigerians always witness high transportation costs to commute to their various towns and villages, which is never helped by the scarcity of petroleum products. This year experienced a usually high transportation cost both by air or by land, with Abuja to Lagos going for as high as N40 000 by road and a one-way trip from Abuja to Lagos going for as high as N130,000.00.

“All the economic indices that caused the issues of persistent food inflation, high transportation costs and high cost of goods and services, in general, are still ravaging the country as we exit 2022.

“There are also no positive signs of a reprieve in the new year before a new government is sworn into power”.

With a few days from 2023, Nigerians hope for a better new year where the government will address significant inflation accelerators such as high energy cost, currency depreciation, disruption in supply and a general increase in the product price.